Star
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Post by Star on Mar 17, 2024 6:04:50 GMT -6
I placed it loosely on top of him, and due to his size, it completely covered his whole head. He did not seem to be worried, though, just standing there waiting for my next instruction as usual. I could not help but to crack a grin at how silly he looked with the oversized helmet hanging loosely off his head. The last thing he needed was a helmet, but it was just too cute not to smile at.
Back to the task at hand, I grabbed a shovel and began to rearrange the loose sand and gravel that covered the ground. The tunnel above clearly poured tons of the stuff on the ground over the years. It was loose and light, easy to shift around. Sha saw me digging and plodded over to assist. The helmet made it impossible for him to see out of his top two eyes, but the bottom ones allowed him to continue to navigate.
32 [24.55, 11.4]
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Star
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Post by Star on Mar 17, 2024 6:05:20 GMT -6
I found it quite interesting how Sha’s unique anatomy seemed to solve many problems for him. The extra eyes seemed at first to be redundant, but after seeing them in action, I believed them to be quite useful to the way he interacted with the world. Nonetheless, I thought it would be best if I removed the helmet so he could fully sense his surroundings again. I thought he would have just thrown it off, but I was mistaken.
“There, now you can help,” I said. To my surprise, he did just that. He thudded his head into the ground and began to shake back and forth, causing the sand around him to stir up into a cloud. It reminded me of a fish shaking sediment at the bottom of a lake to find hidden food. While it was not doing much to further my own goals, he was keeping himself busy and out of trouble, so I allowed him to continue playing in the sand.
33 [24.6, 11.6]
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Star
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Post by Star on Mar 17, 2024 6:06:31 GMT -6
Meanwhile, I went back to the tedious task of separating the foreign material from the true floor of the cavern. Once I got to the bottom of it, I would be able to assess the makeup of the stone and continue my neverending hunt for gems and ores. I continued to dig for a few minutes before my shovel hit the ground with a loud thunk. It had found something it could not easily cut through. I tossed it aside and went in with my claws so I could get a better feel for what had happened.
There was a stone under the rubble that was quite solid and round. I thought this was interesting enough to warrant a second look, so I began to quickly push the rest of the loose rock and gravel away hastily. It felt like the extra dirt went on forever, though eventually I was able to uncover the rock.
34 [24.65, 11.8]
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Star
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Post by Star on Mar 17, 2024 6:06:47 GMT -6
It was egg shaped and smooth, especially compared to the jagged rocks around it. It was sitting at an angle, propping itself up out of the hole it was rested in.
I braced myself against the floor and pushed as hard as I could against the rock, but it did not budge. It had become attached to the ground here, grown into it despite clearly being different than what surrounded it. It might be a geode or some other kind of natural formation, trapping precious crystals inside. I would have to free it from the earth in order to examine it and determine whether or not it was worthy of being carried home.
Returning to my tools, I chose a pick and a mallet. I tested my swing, carefully taking aim at the area between the smooth stone of the protruding rock and the rougher ground around it. I practiced the motion a few times before taking my full might into the swing.
35 [24.7, 12]
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Star
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Post by Star on Mar 17, 2024 6:07:25 GMT -6
Crack! The sound of metal striking stone echoed throughout the cavern.
Sha jumped with surprise, turning away from his mess making to look at me for reassurance. I stopped my next swing short to attend to his plea for attention. As difficult as it was, I needed to remind myself that the point of this trip was bonding, not treasure hunting. I had to prioritize Sha were we ever to form a strong enough bond for him to grow into that magnificent swooper I imagined.
“It is alright, Sha,” I said. My claws were full, so I tossed my tail around him in an odd sort of ‘hug’. “I am going to break this stone free, then we can examine it together,” I explained. He seemed happy with that explanation, and watched intently as I prepared for my next strike.
Crack! Pling! Smash! The pick dug further and further into the solid rock.
36 [24.75, 12.2]
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Star
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Post by Star on Mar 17, 2024 6:07:46 GMT -6
It chipped away in large chunks, giving me further evidence that what was buried here truly was worth the effort. Finally, after much effort, the egg shaped rock shifted in place, merely rolling over unceremoniously. I grinned with delight, for I knew it was finally free.
I eagerly scooped up the egg and wrenched it free from the sliver of stone where it was still attached. Holding it in my claws, it felt light, furthering my assumption that it was hollow inside. “Do you hear that, Sha?” I asked, tapping it with my claws. I held it up to his head so he could hear, too. Though he did not appear to have ears, he regularly reacted to sound, meaning he could hear somehow.
Sha opened his split jaws and wrapped them around the rock and part of my claw along with it. He attempted to bite down, but I yanked it back in time.
37 [24.8, 12.4]
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Star
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Post by Star on Mar 17, 2024 6:08:18 GMT -6
He crunched on nothing but air and looked very confused. “No, Sha, it is not for eating. At least not yet,” I added, thinking it might just be a delicious gem after all.
I balanced the egg stone carefully on a pointed rock and grabbed my mallet. As beautiful as the odd formation was, it was worthless to me until I found out what was inside. I brought the hammer down before I could have second thoughts about preserving it. The way it was balanced caused it to split in nearly perfect halves, just as I had predicted.
“Look Sha,” I said, beckoning him over. His light would illuminate the crystals, making them easier to identify. He tumbled over and plopped down next to the shattered stone without looking at it at all. Ah well at least his light was bright enough to see the quality of what was inside.
38 [24.85, 12.6]
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Star
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Post by Star on Mar 17, 2024 6:08:56 GMT -6
“Beautiful,” I said, turning the spoils over in my claws. I was pleased that it turned out to be worth all the effort. There was always a chance that I was wrong, and all that was inside was air or porous stone. The glittering crystals made me feel much better about our tumultuous trip so far. It was like a confirmation that everything we had gone through was worth it.
I took the shards and collected them into my pack where they belonged. Then, I collected the rest of my tools into a separate pouch. I carefully counted everything to make sure that nothing was lost in the shuffle. The tools were mostly made for use by people, but I found a simple shovel and pick to be difficult to improve upon. That must be why the man at The Underground always did such good business. He knew what was needed to explore this place better than anyone, I supposed.
39 [24.9, 12.8]
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Star
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Post by Star on Mar 17, 2024 6:09:17 GMT -6
“Alright Sha, where to next?” I looked at the piles of loose gravel and sand around me. It was an utter mess after having fallen down from the tunnels above. If each excavation was this much work, perhaps it would be wise to pursue another strategy. I liked our little secret cavern, but I could not shake the thought that something better was just around the corner.
Looking up to where we came from, I could really only see the one tunnel, the one we came from. It seemed unlikely that this was the only way into or out of this cavern, however. There had to be another entrance somewhere. I made a mental note of where it was and chose a direction to travel in. I could always come back here if I wanted to later, but I had a good feeling about there being more places to explore.
40 [24.95, 13]
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Star
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Post by Star on Mar 17, 2024 6:09:37 GMT -6
It was never totally clear which tunnels were natural, which were magical, and which were carved out by the unusual creatures who inhabited the mines. When the world had formed many eons ago, the liquid pool of elements settled into rock and stone. This slow process created the veins of gems, crystals, ores, and everything else buried within the earth. The world cares not for gems, creating them only by an accident of process. A deep understanding of this process allowed one to navigate the mystery of the mines.
However, that was not the only force at play. There was also the magic that laced through the newly born world. Things like magical crystals were created by invading those natural processes. Those crystals, unlike their mundane brethren, sought discovery as if they possessed the sentience to do so. They wanted to be discovered, to be reunited with the forces of life they were inexorably intertwined with.
41 [25, 13.2]
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Star
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Post by Star on Mar 17, 2024 6:09:55 GMT -6
The will of these crystals and other magical forces split open the very fabric of the earth, wrenching free caverns just like the one I stood in. They wanted to be found, pulling themselves ever closer to any being who could perceive them. They hummed and whistled upon one’s very heartstrings, begging to be plucked from the earth, only then to be reunited with the gods in the formation of nodes.
For this reason, I had the very strong feeling that what had happened so far was not coincidence. I was being pulled, beckoned toward an invisible force. I would follow the call, for as much as the crystals wanted to be let free of their earthly prisons, I wanted to possess them in equal measure.
Sha was no small part of this cycle, of course. The laboratory that loomed over the city had created him as an attempt at getting to the purest form of his element.
42 [25.05, 13.4]
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Star
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Post by Star on Mar 17, 2024 6:10:15 GMT -6
Fire, water, wind, and earth were easy elements, but light was something so abstract that it did not quite seem possible. Unlike his brothers and sisters sitting in their pools in my lair, Sha would never be able to fuse. He was the purest element, set apart from the others by his very nature.
Though there was a bit more to the story than that. Sha had a sister who was in every way his opposite. She was made of liquid shadow, the very embodiment of darkness. For if radiant light was its own containable element, so too was the darkness that opposed it.
It was natural, as living things, to see light as good and pure, and if shadow were its opposite, then it must be bad and corrupt. Light, after all, is the method through which many beings perceive the world. It gives their hearts an inherent bias.
43 [25.1, 13.6]
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Star
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Post by Star on Mar 17, 2024 6:10:33 GMT -6
The light which allows me to see is more valuable than the darkness. I prefer instead to see the balance. Without darkness to contrast it, the light would hardly be so praised. Every piece of the universe has its place, even darkness, and to understand that very nature it is to thrive.
Sha was a simple beast. I was very confident that he wasted any time contemplating the vastness of the universe in which he lived. Unlike most beings, his attention was not even to his own survival. He was merely magic given life, with a single instruction imprinted on the fabric of his being. Obey your master. Even if it should cause his demise, he could not betray his only instruction.
I often wondered if a simple life like his could be in a way even more fulfilling. Understanding the complexity of everything only made it harder to see objective truth.
44 [25.15, 13.8]
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Star
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Post by Star on Mar 17, 2024 6:10:52 GMT -6
For Sha there was only one truth, a single thing to fully know, and he never for a moment doubted it. To experience doubt was a fundamental marker of intelligence, but it was also a deeply uncomfortable feeling.
In the end, I always found myself fortunate for the ability to choose. To wonder, and to doubt, and even to suffer. It felt like a gift, and it was one I was determined not to squander. My most recent choice led me down deeper into the crack in the earth. The walls pulled in, making the space feel confined and unsettling. Still, I stood by my choice and decided to continue.
If there was one thing I could always rely on, it was Sha continuing to follow me. No matter where I went, unless I asked him to do otherwise, Sha would follow. Single minded as ever, he plodded along, casting shadows throughout the canyon with his light.
45 [25.2, 14]
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Star
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Post by Star on Mar 17, 2024 6:11:14 GMT -6
I paused and rested an ear against the stone walls of the underground cavern. It was difficult to see, and everything smelled the same, so I thought I might hear something if I focused on it for a moment. There were many strange sounds within the old mines, but this time I could not hear anything noteworthy. It truly felt like a unique space within the mines, as if I had slipped down the tunnel into another dimension.
“Nothing,” I said quietly to myself. I was hoping for a lead, a sign of good things to come. It was distressing not to know what to expect. I still knew where I was, which was better than being lost, but I wished I had something to go on.
Just as I was reconsidering going back, Sha charged forward and disappeared. The tunnel appeared straight from my angle, so him disappearing was a surprise to me.
46 [25.25, 14.2]
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