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steal time for a day - tree 'gift' - fulzanin - 02-03-2020
decisions to decisions are made and not bought
Pain was motivation. It was something that would keep simple minded creatures from getting hurt. It was motivation for more complicated persons as well. Touching a stove would result in a burn, and therefore the burned person would be less likely to touch the stove again in the future. Burns lasted for a long, long time. Astiar had 'learned' this. It was debatable, truly, if the insect was capable of true learning. Some things - passive, normally - were easily grasped by his simple mind. Trees were food. Bugs were friends. Heat was pain. Those were the sorts of things that Astiar easily was able to comprehend. His simple mind demanded equal simplicity. He was a creature that was tied down to instincts due to his bare mind, a mind that was time and time again referred to as being nonexistent. There was something there, though. It was just as simple as the rest of him. He was, after all, not just a cicada. He had been ripped from his cicada body and thrown into that of a dragon. He had grown in ways that no other cicada would have been able to. He was a dragon in body and function, but his mind was entirely that of a bug. It was only devoted to finding and eating food. Yet, somehow, in the midst of this, the dragon had somehow managed to form an idea of friendship. Recognition. Things that simple minded bugs could barely do. Yes, Astiar barely managed and therefore it fit into the category of more bug-minded nonsense.
What instinct bound minds were not bound to was reason. Reasoning and logic were two things that Astiar was exempt from. Applicable learning - such as being yelled at - had it's responses. He could not use deductive reasoning and create conclusions from prior knowledge. Repetition and trial and error were the biggest methods that he could use in order to survive other than instinct. Food used to be plentiful in the Pitt's territory. Now, it was all gone. It had been burned. There was hardly anything left for him to eat there. Dangerous situations and starvation had prompted him to come here once before to feast upon the plentiful trees. It was a trial, and there had been error. He had been burned, one of his legs bitten and his chest slashed at by mighty claws. His body still bore the wounds, even if most of it had been healed. The lava burns had darkened a decent chunk of the scales of the injured limb. They had grown back jagged initially, but had now smoothed down to match the rest of his scales spare their discoloration. A bite wound had been administered the second time that he'd returned. It had healed quicker than the lava wound but still showed itself with the dents present in his scaly armor. Again, mostly healed was the wound, but still present nonetheless.
After all these injuries, perhaps a smart person would have reasoned to never return to the place where they had occurred - much like a child touching a stove. It was simple cause and effect. Doing one thing had caused another. Astiar had been hurt both times he had come to this swampy place. However, his simple mind was running along a track of impulse. Instinct heavy was his mind, but there was the barest presence of something else. If he could manage curiosity, there was room for other deviations to arise as well. Utter stupidity of what he was doing currently fell within that category. A few hours prior he had risen up and set off on this absolute mess of an activity. His noisy wings had carried him through the air to the shore. Tropical portion of such, where he had hoisted a mighty palm tree from the ground. He was weak, hungry, and it had required him to dig at the sand around the tree. He had taken the liberty of trying some of the coconuts up in the higher portion. His strong jaws were easily able to crush the coconut and obtain the sustenance within - not to mention gulping down the shell portion in addition to the fleshy insides. Astiar eyed the felled tree for a few moments. Slowly he craned his head down, and picked up the tree from its center. Then, his mandibles clenched down against the bark in order to further secure it. Getting back up into the air had been difficult, but he had managed.
Currently he sat with the felled palm tree before him. His sitting position had always been awkward and gawky. Astiar didn't know how to sit - cicadas certainly didn't do such. His wings were buzzing as always, but quieter than the norm. Exhausted were the flight enabling wings from lugging both his massive body as well as the hefty tree over to the current location. It was somewhat tiring, and how badly did Astiar want to rip into this tree to sate his hunger. However, he restrained. Barely. His antennae curled and his head was lowered. Soft chittering noises parted from his mouth which hung open, panting. The heaviness of the tree was the reason for why he did not drag food back to the Pitt and store it there. It simply was pushing the upper limits of Astiar's strength. The tree was close to him, placed somewhat underneath his lowered head. When the dragon heard noise, the noise of approach, his ever present buzzing began to increase. In contrast to his last times of wandering into the territory of Tanglewood, he now had a new method of communication other than physical movements and nonsensical noise. The blue antennae that the mighty beast possessed raised, and he sought to shriek into the mind of whomever was approaching with the same level of noise that his screeches and shrieks possessed, "GREETING SMALL NO FOOD NO BURN NO PAIN LIGHT FOOD SMALL." It was loud, noisy, but it was better than absolutely no words being exchanged at all. There wasn't fear, not yet - the bug's stupidity and basic processes was immeasurable in that manner. His mandibles clicked, another absent noise that added to the symphony of ear wrenching noise and bleeding eyesore that was the dragon.
What instinct bound minds were not bound to was reason. Reasoning and logic were two things that Astiar was exempt from. Applicable learning - such as being yelled at - had it's responses. He could not use deductive reasoning and create conclusions from prior knowledge. Repetition and trial and error were the biggest methods that he could use in order to survive other than instinct. Food used to be plentiful in the Pitt's territory. Now, it was all gone. It had been burned. There was hardly anything left for him to eat there. Dangerous situations and starvation had prompted him to come here once before to feast upon the plentiful trees. It was a trial, and there had been error. He had been burned, one of his legs bitten and his chest slashed at by mighty claws. His body still bore the wounds, even if most of it had been healed. The lava burns had darkened a decent chunk of the scales of the injured limb. They had grown back jagged initially, but had now smoothed down to match the rest of his scales spare their discoloration. A bite wound had been administered the second time that he'd returned. It had healed quicker than the lava wound but still showed itself with the dents present in his scaly armor. Again, mostly healed was the wound, but still present nonetheless.
After all these injuries, perhaps a smart person would have reasoned to never return to the place where they had occurred - much like a child touching a stove. It was simple cause and effect. Doing one thing had caused another. Astiar had been hurt both times he had come to this swampy place. However, his simple mind was running along a track of impulse. Instinct heavy was his mind, but there was the barest presence of something else. If he could manage curiosity, there was room for other deviations to arise as well. Utter stupidity of what he was doing currently fell within that category. A few hours prior he had risen up and set off on this absolute mess of an activity. His noisy wings had carried him through the air to the shore. Tropical portion of such, where he had hoisted a mighty palm tree from the ground. He was weak, hungry, and it had required him to dig at the sand around the tree. He had taken the liberty of trying some of the coconuts up in the higher portion. His strong jaws were easily able to crush the coconut and obtain the sustenance within - not to mention gulping down the shell portion in addition to the fleshy insides. Astiar eyed the felled tree for a few moments. Slowly he craned his head down, and picked up the tree from its center. Then, his mandibles clenched down against the bark in order to further secure it. Getting back up into the air had been difficult, but he had managed.
Currently he sat with the felled palm tree before him. His sitting position had always been awkward and gawky. Astiar didn't know how to sit - cicadas certainly didn't do such. His wings were buzzing as always, but quieter than the norm. Exhausted were the flight enabling wings from lugging both his massive body as well as the hefty tree over to the current location. It was somewhat tiring, and how badly did Astiar want to rip into this tree to sate his hunger. However, he restrained. Barely. His antennae curled and his head was lowered. Soft chittering noises parted from his mouth which hung open, panting. The heaviness of the tree was the reason for why he did not drag food back to the Pitt and store it there. It simply was pushing the upper limits of Astiar's strength. The tree was close to him, placed somewhat underneath his lowered head. When the dragon heard noise, the noise of approach, his ever present buzzing began to increase. In contrast to his last times of wandering into the territory of Tanglewood, he now had a new method of communication other than physical movements and nonsensical noise. The blue antennae that the mighty beast possessed raised, and he sought to shriek into the mind of whomever was approaching with the same level of noise that his screeches and shrieks possessed, "GREETING SMALL NO FOOD NO BURN NO PAIN LIGHT FOOD SMALL." It was loud, noisy, but it was better than absolutely no words being exchanged at all. There wasn't fear, not yet - the bug's stupidity and basic processes was immeasurable in that manner. His mandibles clicked, another absent noise that added to the symphony of ear wrenching noise and bleeding eyesore that was the dragon.
control yourself and take only what you need from it
TAGS 9/4/19:
Re: steal time for a day - tree 'gift' - wormwood. - 02-04-2020
[table][tr][td]
AURUM
DO NO HARM BUT TAKE NO SHIT !
[/td][td][/td][/tr][/table]
Aurum fucking hated Astiar. It wasn't difficult to put together why, considering the history that he and the giant cicada trapped in an all too large body had. The lion had been the one to inflict the ugly discolored burn marks that now marred Astiar's body, and he didn't regret doing so one bit. The other had stolen his son, one of the most precious beings in the entire world to him, and then had the balls to come to the territory and attempt to eat their fucking trees, of all things. Normally the angel would be willing to give a creature with such little brain power the benefit of the doubt, but it wasn't as if this was an isolated incident. Not only had he stolen Roy and tried to chow down on their trees, but then he had come along with Kydobi when that bastard had decided to intrude upon their territory and insult them under the guise of seeing Piers. Just seeing Astiar then had been enough to put Aurum into a hate filled state, sure that the simple minded dragon had been trained to be loyal to the Pitt and exist as nothing but a personal pain in the ass to him, specifically. He had really hoped that the whole incident with Kydobi and Leroy chomping onto him would lead to Astiar finally leaving them alone, since he was fairly sure if he saw the large creature come around again, he was going to bash his own head against the ground and beg for death. He was sure that Snarl would be more than willing to grant his request, since he doubted Astiar would be smart enough to even catch onto what he was doing.
Unfortunately for Aurum, it seemed as though his wish had not been granted. It was a real shame, too, since his morning had been going so well. He had finally been beginning to feel a little bit less pissed off after the whole bonfire incident with Snarl and Vathmos, and had a nice long calming conversation with Roy over breakfast. He had figured that his usual daily patrol would be fairly uneventful, since things had thankfully been beginning to slow down a little bit as of late, and perhaps he could see if later he could rope Crowley into playing a game with him or something. A soft and pleased hum had left the lion as he padded along, his heavy footsteps mingling in with the usual noises of the swamp, like the birds chirping and the large, broad leaves of the trees swaying in the wind. Everything had just seemed so normal and pleasant, but then that damn buzzing had started. When he first heard it, Aurum just figured that perhaps there was a bug near his ear, or a hive nearby in one of the trees. However, after a few firm flicks of his ear and a glance skywards, it became clear that this wasn't the case. His shoulders slumped as soon as the first glimpse of brightly colored scales passed overhead, just barely visible through the treetops. Almost immediately, all of the positivity drained from his mind, his body feeling exhausted and his eyes dulling. Rationally Aurum knew that he was actually rather young for a lion, and was in fact just a young adult, but he felt far too old for this shit at the moment.
There was a moment of hesitation. Just one single fleeting moment where the proxy heavily considered just turning around and trudging back to camp, and completely ignoring the scene that was sure to be ahead of him. It would've been so easy, just to return home and take a nice long nap instead of dealing with Astiar and the rage that he inevitably brought with him. However, Aurum also knew that would be very irresponsible, considering Astiar still carried the scent of the Pitt with him, and it was his job to defend everyone back home – even if Astiar was about as good in combat as a rock, or a log. In fact, a log might've actually done more damage than him. The lion's paws felt as though they might as well have weighed a thousand pounds as he hesitantly trudged in the direction of the rapid buzzing, trying to keep his blood pressure from going up too terribly high. He felt angry for sure, but above all he just felt exhausted, and wished that Astiar had the mental capacity to learn to fuck right off back to whatever bug based hell he had emerged from, intent on making Aurum have an aneurysm. Was he being a little overdramatic? Perhaps a little bit, but he was also being forced to be face to face with his son's kidnapper for the third time now, and said kidnapper was dumb as a bad of very poorly taken care of rocks, so he felt like he had a right to be a little dramatic.
As if sensing that he could somehow make Aurum's life even more terrible, this was when Astiar chose to go on screeching in the proxy's head. It caught the angel terribly off guard, having a loud screeching voice yelling at him about nonsense in a seemingly random order. It startled him so much, in fact, that he actually let out a shout of pain, covering his ears and putting his head down. It didn't help, of course, since the voice was coming from inside rather than out, but it was all he could think of to stop the throbbing pain produced from Astiar's voice. When the lion lifted his head again, one azure eye focused and full of hatred directed solely at Astiar, he felt less exhausted and more pissed off. Without him even willing it to happen, lava began to drip forth from his maw, slipping down past his fangs and bubbling against the ground below. He wasn't spitting it yet, but it was a silent threat, one that his body was making without him even needing to ask. Claws sinking down into the earth beneath him, Aurum roared up at Astiar, eager for the other to get the hell off of his territory, "Jesus Christ! You again? For fuck's sake, get off of our territory! We don't want your goddamn buzzing, or your yelling in people's brains, or your fucking trees! Can't you see that you're not wanted here? I know your brain is probably smaller than my paw, but surely you have to associate this place with pain!" Was Aurum using Astiar as a sort of outlet for all of his recent anger that had come about as of late? Perhaps, but the giant cicada dragon did produce far more than enough anger on his own for a rant such as this.
Unfortunately for Aurum, it seemed as though his wish had not been granted. It was a real shame, too, since his morning had been going so well. He had finally been beginning to feel a little bit less pissed off after the whole bonfire incident with Snarl and Vathmos, and had a nice long calming conversation with Roy over breakfast. He had figured that his usual daily patrol would be fairly uneventful, since things had thankfully been beginning to slow down a little bit as of late, and perhaps he could see if later he could rope Crowley into playing a game with him or something. A soft and pleased hum had left the lion as he padded along, his heavy footsteps mingling in with the usual noises of the swamp, like the birds chirping and the large, broad leaves of the trees swaying in the wind. Everything had just seemed so normal and pleasant, but then that damn buzzing had started. When he first heard it, Aurum just figured that perhaps there was a bug near his ear, or a hive nearby in one of the trees. However, after a few firm flicks of his ear and a glance skywards, it became clear that this wasn't the case. His shoulders slumped as soon as the first glimpse of brightly colored scales passed overhead, just barely visible through the treetops. Almost immediately, all of the positivity drained from his mind, his body feeling exhausted and his eyes dulling. Rationally Aurum knew that he was actually rather young for a lion, and was in fact just a young adult, but he felt far too old for this shit at the moment.
There was a moment of hesitation. Just one single fleeting moment where the proxy heavily considered just turning around and trudging back to camp, and completely ignoring the scene that was sure to be ahead of him. It would've been so easy, just to return home and take a nice long nap instead of dealing with Astiar and the rage that he inevitably brought with him. However, Aurum also knew that would be very irresponsible, considering Astiar still carried the scent of the Pitt with him, and it was his job to defend everyone back home – even if Astiar was about as good in combat as a rock, or a log. In fact, a log might've actually done more damage than him. The lion's paws felt as though they might as well have weighed a thousand pounds as he hesitantly trudged in the direction of the rapid buzzing, trying to keep his blood pressure from going up too terribly high. He felt angry for sure, but above all he just felt exhausted, and wished that Astiar had the mental capacity to learn to fuck right off back to whatever bug based hell he had emerged from, intent on making Aurum have an aneurysm. Was he being a little overdramatic? Perhaps a little bit, but he was also being forced to be face to face with his son's kidnapper for the third time now, and said kidnapper was dumb as a bad of very poorly taken care of rocks, so he felt like he had a right to be a little dramatic.
As if sensing that he could somehow make Aurum's life even more terrible, this was when Astiar chose to go on screeching in the proxy's head. It caught the angel terribly off guard, having a loud screeching voice yelling at him about nonsense in a seemingly random order. It startled him so much, in fact, that he actually let out a shout of pain, covering his ears and putting his head down. It didn't help, of course, since the voice was coming from inside rather than out, but it was all he could think of to stop the throbbing pain produced from Astiar's voice. When the lion lifted his head again, one azure eye focused and full of hatred directed solely at Astiar, he felt less exhausted and more pissed off. Without him even willing it to happen, lava began to drip forth from his maw, slipping down past his fangs and bubbling against the ground below. He wasn't spitting it yet, but it was a silent threat, one that his body was making without him even needing to ask. Claws sinking down into the earth beneath him, Aurum roared up at Astiar, eager for the other to get the hell off of his territory, "Jesus Christ! You again? For fuck's sake, get off of our territory! We don't want your goddamn buzzing, or your yelling in people's brains, or your fucking trees! Can't you see that you're not wanted here? I know your brain is probably smaller than my paw, but surely you have to associate this place with pain!" Was Aurum using Astiar as a sort of outlet for all of his recent anger that had come about as of late? Perhaps, but the giant cicada dragon did produce far more than enough anger on his own for a rant such as this.
━ I'M GONNA WIN.┆PROUD. WARM. PROTECTIVE. ━
Re: steal time for a day - tree 'gift' - charactercemetary. - 02-04-2020
[glow=#000,1,400]WE'VE BECOMES ECHOES BUT ECHOES, THEY FADE AWAY — ｡+ﾟ.[/glow]
What on Earth was that? Some sort of sorcerer? What in the absolute fuck? His eyes go wide, irises reflecting whatever this hideous creature was. Half of him wanted to run, but he didn't appear to be doing anything but... eating a tree. Oh. He's... slow. The boy realizes, before he sees Aurum and notices the yelling. Wow, he really could be mean when he wanted to, couldn't he? Pain? Associated with pain? What?
He snaps his gaze back to the creature. "Kin- ahem, Aurum, let me try." He tells the lion, lowering his voice. "I don't think ranting and raving will exactly fix the issue at hand. As much as you deserve to be able to scream, unfortunately." He walks closer, his steps light, as if he was trying to be silent. "Hi, pal. I'm sorry, but I don't think this is where you live. Can you leave? Please?" His voice was calm and gentle, like ocean waves against a beach.
However, he glanced back at Aurum: what the fuck has gotten into you? He silently asks the lion. Did Astiar do something? Or was the angel just angry that someone knocked down a tree? He understood that the man was stressed - with like 99% of it coming from Kaito himself - but this wasn't like the older lion. Maybe he just needed to get his anger out, but this wasn't the way to do it.
He snaps his gaze back to the creature. "Kin- ahem, Aurum, let me try." He tells the lion, lowering his voice. "I don't think ranting and raving will exactly fix the issue at hand. As much as you deserve to be able to scream, unfortunately." He walks closer, his steps light, as if he was trying to be silent. "Hi, pal. I'm sorry, but I don't think this is where you live. Can you leave? Please?" His voice was calm and gentle, like ocean waves against a beach.
However, he glanced back at Aurum: what the fuck has gotten into you? He silently asks the lion. Did Astiar do something? Or was the angel just angry that someone knocked down a tree? He understood that the man was stressed - with like 99% of it coming from Kaito himself - but this wasn't like the older lion. Maybe he just needed to get his anger out, but this wasn't the way to do it.
Re: steal time for a day - tree 'gift' - toboggan - 02-06-2020
Leroy Starkweather happened to be the third Tangler who chanced upon the stray beast, and, candidly, his temperament took a turn for the worst. Aurum and Kaitou were those who arrived before him; Aurum being judiciously savage with the unwanted guest, and Kaitou attempting to be the voice of reason - ironically enough, though, the most reasonable Tangler present was the Proxy. Astiar was Pittian scum. The abhorrent creature kidnapped Roy for Jervis' perverted endeavours, and happily resided within the desert/jungle territory without seeing any wrong in doing so. In addition, its mental activity appeared to function at a minimal level, rendering it severely stupid - which could be dangerous, as stupidity in someone oft bred unpredictability (Leroy addresses Astiar as 'it', due to how the beast proved itself to not be of any intelligence whatsoever). Case and point in regards to unpredictability, the huge tree that it seemingly gifted to the tribe. The specimen of tree wasn't even one of Tanglewoodian origin (the region was swampy, not tropical), leading the leader to believe that the plant was ripped from Typhoon soil. The canine couldn't even ask the dragon on its thought process, for it was unpredictable. All he could do was hope to ward it away - permanently.
"You best listen to the kid," Leroy growls, approaching from the lion's flank, "'cause if you ever come back, you're gonna get killed. I can't tell ya HOW many warnings ya got to your name, but it's the most we've given to anyone." In addition to abducting Roy, Astiar also found itself present during Kydobi's venture to the border. Why it returned even after it had gotten attacked, the general could not understand. What he could understand, however, was that he'd been too lax on Shittians wandering too close to their territory. Anywhere else on the island they could visit, yet they always chose the forest, which was inhabited by those who didn't want them there. An abundance of his comrades were stolen, brutally harmed, tortured, and murdered at Pittian hands. Until an official apology was given, none from that group would leave the territory alive, should the enter it.
"If ya knew what was good for ya," the mongrel continues, his tone offering begrudging remission, "ya would leave that place you call home, and go somewheres that hasn't killed countless innocent folks who were just tryna live their lives. So many of my friends - my FAMILY, even - would be alive if it weren't for your people. So leave them, and live a better life."
"Otherwise, leave us. Or die."
"You best listen to the kid," Leroy growls, approaching from the lion's flank, "'cause if you ever come back, you're gonna get killed. I can't tell ya HOW many warnings ya got to your name, but it's the most we've given to anyone." In addition to abducting Roy, Astiar also found itself present during Kydobi's venture to the border. Why it returned even after it had gotten attacked, the general could not understand. What he could understand, however, was that he'd been too lax on Shittians wandering too close to their territory. Anywhere else on the island they could visit, yet they always chose the forest, which was inhabited by those who didn't want them there. An abundance of his comrades were stolen, brutally harmed, tortured, and murdered at Pittian hands. Until an official apology was given, none from that group would leave the territory alive, should the enter it.
"If ya knew what was good for ya," the mongrel continues, his tone offering begrudging remission, "ya would leave that place you call home, and go somewheres that hasn't killed countless innocent folks who were just tryna live their lives. So many of my friends - my FAMILY, even - would be alive if it weren't for your people. So leave them, and live a better life."
"Otherwise, leave us. Or die."
Re: steal time for a day - tree 'gift' - fulzanin - 02-09-2020
decisions to decisions are made and not bought
The insect wasn't able to be sure of whether he was pleased or not that the lion was the first to approach. The most dangerous thing was lava, was it not? Not the lion that spewed it. The lava and the lava alone was what he feared and sought to ensure his safety from. For a simple and mindless beast, it was almost a plan. To bring food to ensure his safety, because surely what he ate was what everyone else ate. It was that part that was faulted on his part for not being able to comprehend further than the basics. His reasoning had been that lava could not eat the swamp trees, and therefore an external source had to be provided. A palm tree had been the first tree that he'd found. The jungle trees had been burned, and the swamp trees were the only other trees that he knew of so far. Noise was coming from the lion, too swift and far too complicated for him to understand. His antennae wriggled, confused, not able to comprehend. The tone was irritated; Astiar briefly able to grasp it. Only on the most surface level. His head raised up a little, before leaning forward as if it would somehow allow a better understanding of the infuriated words that came from the Proxy.
The lava that began to dribble forth brought a nervous demeanor to his stance. The beast hunched over a little, and the end of his barbed tail twitched behind him. Soft chittering noises sounded from him, and his mouth parted to sound a pathetic whimper. Another person approached, and such briefly distracted the gigantic bug. His wings buzzed faintly, and his head lowered again. There was no prior knowledge stored within his bare mind. Astiar could only hope that no more lava was about to come forth. The tone was quieter, less vicious - such the blunt minded beast was able to grasp much as he had the aggravation. "FOOD," he again mentally screeched out. He was unable to control his tone due to the lack of experience with speech. A simple phrase, better than a spurt of nonsense that had come from him when he had initially been approached. Astiar's head lowered further, and he harshly shoved the palm tree forward with his beaky maw. Then his head raised again, clicking his mandibles together in a manner that almost managed to be expectant. Astiar's red eyes were near unblinking, staring, waiting for a response for his action. His second set of legs curled awkwardly from where the massive bug was sitting, somewhat clawing at the dirt. Somewhat more relaxed was the bug, now with a calmer set of words taking up the forefront of his mind. Could he understand what had actually been said? Not in the slightest. Astiar was only able to understand that it was not aggressive, that there was no lava coming forth from this particular creature yet. No lava, no burns. He did not want to be burned again.
Then came the leader of the group. A mighty force to be reckoned with, and one that had injured Astiar prior. The bite wound that was somewhat healed on the frontside of his body had been caused by the leader. Growls sounded, earning his attention and so his head turned to listen. His stance that had almost devolved from paranoid from the lava had swiftly returned, and his mandibles clenched tightly together. The words that Leroy spoke were strung together eloquently. They were filled with a tone that matched the message that he tried to send. It was a masterful speech, one that conveyed the message clear as day to those that could understand. Astiar had given up trying to understand after the first few words. The complexity quickly devolved into noise, and he could not understand. By the time the simple command at the end came around, the cicada was so thoroughly jostled by so many words that he'd risen up to begin backing away. The ending had been so clear, so concise, but it had already been buried by the lengthy words prior. Blue antennae curled from their position atop Astiar's head. The movements of his lanky limbs to push his body backwards were staggered and performed with difficulty. Finally, after backing away a few paces and giving another sharp movement of his head towards the tree, he fully turned and moved away to where he would be able to fly off without smacking into the trees overhead. In his mind, he had fulfilled what he had came here to do. The cicada had dropped off food, and hadn't been burned in the process. Noisy buzzing sounded his departure after a few moments of walking, his legs bunching up and allowing him to buzz off.
The lava that began to dribble forth brought a nervous demeanor to his stance. The beast hunched over a little, and the end of his barbed tail twitched behind him. Soft chittering noises sounded from him, and his mouth parted to sound a pathetic whimper. Another person approached, and such briefly distracted the gigantic bug. His wings buzzed faintly, and his head lowered again. There was no prior knowledge stored within his bare mind. Astiar could only hope that no more lava was about to come forth. The tone was quieter, less vicious - such the blunt minded beast was able to grasp much as he had the aggravation. "FOOD," he again mentally screeched out. He was unable to control his tone due to the lack of experience with speech. A simple phrase, better than a spurt of nonsense that had come from him when he had initially been approached. Astiar's head lowered further, and he harshly shoved the palm tree forward with his beaky maw. Then his head raised again, clicking his mandibles together in a manner that almost managed to be expectant. Astiar's red eyes were near unblinking, staring, waiting for a response for his action. His second set of legs curled awkwardly from where the massive bug was sitting, somewhat clawing at the dirt. Somewhat more relaxed was the bug, now with a calmer set of words taking up the forefront of his mind. Could he understand what had actually been said? Not in the slightest. Astiar was only able to understand that it was not aggressive, that there was no lava coming forth from this particular creature yet. No lava, no burns. He did not want to be burned again.
Then came the leader of the group. A mighty force to be reckoned with, and one that had injured Astiar prior. The bite wound that was somewhat healed on the frontside of his body had been caused by the leader. Growls sounded, earning his attention and so his head turned to listen. His stance that had almost devolved from paranoid from the lava had swiftly returned, and his mandibles clenched tightly together. The words that Leroy spoke were strung together eloquently. They were filled with a tone that matched the message that he tried to send. It was a masterful speech, one that conveyed the message clear as day to those that could understand. Astiar had given up trying to understand after the first few words. The complexity quickly devolved into noise, and he could not understand. By the time the simple command at the end came around, the cicada was so thoroughly jostled by so many words that he'd risen up to begin backing away. The ending had been so clear, so concise, but it had already been buried by the lengthy words prior. Blue antennae curled from their position atop Astiar's head. The movements of his lanky limbs to push his body backwards were staggered and performed with difficulty. Finally, after backing away a few paces and giving another sharp movement of his head towards the tree, he fully turned and moved away to where he would be able to fly off without smacking into the trees overhead. In his mind, he had fulfilled what he had came here to do. The cicada had dropped off food, and hadn't been burned in the process. Noisy buzzing sounded his departure after a few moments of walking, his legs bunching up and allowing him to buzz off.
control yourself and take only what you need from it
TAGS 9/4/19:
Re: steal time for a day - tree 'gift' - wormwood. - 02-10-2020
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AURUM
DO NO HARM BUT TAKE NO SHIT !
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Astiar's latest visit had been, thankfully for the both of them, quick and painless, aside from some shouting on the Tanglewood side. Thankfully for Aurum because the proxy didn't particularly want the others to see him flying off the handle again – although the screaming and shouting was pretty unusual for the calm and warm lion – and thankfully for Astiar, because it meant that the giant draconic bug would not end up with teeth sunk into his carapace again, or magna bubbling and eating away at his flesh. The proxy had been so caught up in the rage building in his chest that he nearly didn't hear Kaito's soft and pleasing voice directed at him, calmly trying to get him to cool the fuck down and think about what he was doing. Aurum could still feel his tail lashing angrily from side to side behind him as he listened to the phantom thief, but he ceased his yelling for the moment, lava still dripping down slowly and steadily from his jaws despite his efforts to stop it. He knew that Kaito's efforts to communicate with Astiar were essentially useless, even if the large draconic bug had gained a few new tricks since the last time he had been there. As if on cue, Astiar let out a mental screech about food that made Aurum wince, his ears flattening down against his skull as he glared at the Pittian, secretly very pleased his lava still frightened the creature.
Leroy was over and talking as well, supporting the lion's point perfectly with his words. Albeit in a slightly less furious fashion – although his speech did twist a little bit at certain parts, becoming more firm and aggravated. Aurum nodded his head in agreement with Leroy's words, rumbling as he looked at Kaito, "This creature is the absolute shitstain who stole Roy away from me briefly and took him to the Pitt where he was brainwashed. I don't care how stupid the thing is, I don't want to see its face around here anymore." His voice was solid and unwavering, and he meant every word of what he said. Perhaps he was being a little bit cruel, or maybe slightly too harsh, but the proxy honestly didn't give a shit. If it hadn't been for Astiar, then Roy never would've ended up at the Pitt, and he wouldn't have to deal with the painful memories of being brainwashed, unable to remember those that loved him. Just the thought of it made Aurum's chest ache painfully, anger eating away at his chest, and he snapped at Astiar, his lips pulled back to show off bright and sharp fangs, "What you brought us isn't fucking food. And if you're here expecting handouts or forgiveness, you can go fuck yourself. I don't even know if you can actually understand a goddamn word coming out of my mouth but if you can? Fuck off." Part of him really just wanted to charge forward and let the fury grip him. Let it redden his vision and fill his ears with ringing and just tear, tear, tear until there was no Astiar left to return to the Pitt. Still, he held himself back, just taking a deep inhale outward and a slow exhale out.
When Astiar began to move again, Aurum immediately tensed up, his eye narrowing angrily and the production of lava speeding up. He fully expected the creature to move forward and do something even more stupid, like attempt touching one of them or even work up the balls to attack. However, he was wrong, and all Astiar did was shift around, his large body seemingly working out what it was doing before he let his many legs bunch up, flinging him off into the sky. The proxy felt surprise for a moment, before it was rapidly replaced with relief, a slow sigh leaving him as exhaustion filled up his every limb. He watched for another moment as Astiar went flying off into the distance before he allowed himself to turn around, shaking his head firmly. The lava drooling out of his mouth and pooling on the ground beneath him ceased, and he mumbled as he began to pad towards the town, "Jesus Christ... I'm going back to town. I need a nap or something after this nonsense." He took a few long strides before launching himself up and into the air, his wings granting him liftoff back towards the comfort and rest that his new home provided.
( out! )
Leroy was over and talking as well, supporting the lion's point perfectly with his words. Albeit in a slightly less furious fashion – although his speech did twist a little bit at certain parts, becoming more firm and aggravated. Aurum nodded his head in agreement with Leroy's words, rumbling as he looked at Kaito, "This creature is the absolute shitstain who stole Roy away from me briefly and took him to the Pitt where he was brainwashed. I don't care how stupid the thing is, I don't want to see its face around here anymore." His voice was solid and unwavering, and he meant every word of what he said. Perhaps he was being a little bit cruel, or maybe slightly too harsh, but the proxy honestly didn't give a shit. If it hadn't been for Astiar, then Roy never would've ended up at the Pitt, and he wouldn't have to deal with the painful memories of being brainwashed, unable to remember those that loved him. Just the thought of it made Aurum's chest ache painfully, anger eating away at his chest, and he snapped at Astiar, his lips pulled back to show off bright and sharp fangs, "What you brought us isn't fucking food. And if you're here expecting handouts or forgiveness, you can go fuck yourself. I don't even know if you can actually understand a goddamn word coming out of my mouth but if you can? Fuck off." Part of him really just wanted to charge forward and let the fury grip him. Let it redden his vision and fill his ears with ringing and just tear, tear, tear until there was no Astiar left to return to the Pitt. Still, he held himself back, just taking a deep inhale outward and a slow exhale out.
When Astiar began to move again, Aurum immediately tensed up, his eye narrowing angrily and the production of lava speeding up. He fully expected the creature to move forward and do something even more stupid, like attempt touching one of them or even work up the balls to attack. However, he was wrong, and all Astiar did was shift around, his large body seemingly working out what it was doing before he let his many legs bunch up, flinging him off into the sky. The proxy felt surprise for a moment, before it was rapidly replaced with relief, a slow sigh leaving him as exhaustion filled up his every limb. He watched for another moment as Astiar went flying off into the distance before he allowed himself to turn around, shaking his head firmly. The lava drooling out of his mouth and pooling on the ground beneath him ceased, and he mumbled as he began to pad towards the town, "Jesus Christ... I'm going back to town. I need a nap or something after this nonsense." He took a few long strides before launching himself up and into the air, his wings granting him liftoff back towards the comfort and rest that his new home provided.
( out! )
━ I'M GONNA WIN.┆PROUD. WARM. PROTECTIVE. ━