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Post by Xentus on Oct 19, 2020 3:19:46 GMT -6
Xentus did well to hold his breath as he gave one good tug on the planks to finally and properly expose the contents within the box. And it would seem he faced the latter of the two options for the source of the stench. A colony of mushrooms and slime mold was happily growing on the interior walls of the box. All things do eventually decompose by some method or another, he supposed. The flourishing life aside, he was interested in seeing what else the container held.. The light from his torch dimly illuminated the contents. A few tool handles, empty tins, a rusted knife.. And another smaller box. None of the items took his interest aside from the other box, so he carefully plucked it from the mess of contents. The smaller box was hinged and latched, though either mechanism was rusted over. With how the gargoyle was so interested in his work, he decided to hand the item to the creature to explore it.
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Post by Xentus on Oct 19, 2020 3:26:26 GMT -6
"Take", the leopard told it encouragingly, "Perhaps Varus might open it, hm?" A gentle smile rested on his face as the gargoyle gingerly took the box from his extended palm. It was given a chance to do something. The warden did seem to struggle with the larger box. Varus had a vague understanding of what the leopard told it, based on what it saw. But the mammalian didn't stay to watch its efforts. He was already starting to head off back to the hall. The gargoyle looked between the man and the small box, hollow eyes trying to decide what to make of this offering. It could walk and pry, it supposed. The gargoyle straightened itself and adopted a hobbling, two-legged stance to that its hands were free to fiddle with the object. It was.. Harder than it looked, now that it got to try this activity for itself. The warden was more impressive than it thought.
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Post by Nadia on Oct 19, 2020 9:11:50 GMT -6
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Post by Xentus on Oct 20, 2020 3:06:12 GMT -6
The constructed box wasn't like a stone or egg. Its beak could damage the wood, but by no means shatter or crack it. The gargoyle pecked at random, fingers trying to pry at the slight seam between the lid and the top. The construction seemed to slowly loosen.. But it wasn't until its beak struck the rusted metal hinge that it got somewhere. The metal cracked, letting one corner of the box wiggle more freely. Progress! The stone creature's hollowed eyes peered up at the warden, hoping he might take a look at what it did. The cracking sound was enough to garner Xentus's attention, his curious blue eyes peering over his shoulder to take a look. The box wasn't yet open, but it seemed close. An approving hum sounded from the warden before he returned his attention back to the path ahead. Varus was a little disappointed.. But not discouraged.
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Post by Xentus on Oct 20, 2020 3:10:39 GMT -6
Now it knew what to try. The gargoyle's nimble fingers turned the box over, lining up another rusted hinge with its rocky beak. And strike! With a well aimed peck, stone clashed with metal. Not quite enough to break this one.. The resounding noise echoed down the hall, sure to alert anything ahead of their presence. It could be a good or bad thing.. Xentus mulled briefly on whether or not they should've proceeded a little more quietly, but it was too late now, wasn't it? If there was something ahead that didn't want them here, it was likely to be alert and wary of their intrusion. His mouth twisted into a slight frown at the thought. Varus was oblivious to the concern the warden had, and readied itself for another peck. And strike! With that, the hinge shattered, bits of metal and rust scattering against the stony ground below.
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Post by Xentus on Oct 20, 2020 3:19:28 GMT -6
The lid of the box was barely attached, held on only by the latch now. Noticing the now loosened lid, the gargoyle pried at the seam in hopes to finally take a look at whatever it was hidden within. It felt something moving around within while manipulating the wooden item. With a final pop the lid was snapped off and the contents were revealed to be.. A single black gem. Varus carefully plucked the gem from its confines, dropping what remained of the box on the ground. Pleased with itself, the stone being clacked its beak in hopes to garner the warden's attention, hollowed eyes staying hard into the man's hair. With all that noise, the gargoyle was quite difficult to ignore. Xentus had an ear flicked back listening to the racket, and so he was curious to see the results once the noise came to an end. And as he'd hoped, it seemed there was something that rewarded the gargoyle's efforts.
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Post by Xentus on Oct 20, 2020 5:21:02 GMT -6
A warm smile spread on the warden's face as he turned to see what it held out. A black rock. It would be a pleasant gift for the warden, hopefully. Something a miner tried to hide away - spoils taken as their own only to leave it forgotten. Xentus graciously took the gem so that he could take a closer look. Varus was staring hard at him. It even seemed eager to see what he thought. The leopard wasn't quite versed in reading the gargoyle's behavior yet, but something about it seemed forward. It was pleasant to see the stone being starting to open up more with time. He gave it a thankful nod and turned the gem around in his fingers. The man mused on it for a moment.. Ah yes, he knew this one - hematite. A fairly common mineral with low value. Despite that, it was still a fairly attractive, shiny black mineral that could be polished into a gem-like appearance.
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Post by Xentus on Oct 20, 2020 5:29:27 GMT -6
"Excellent work, Varus", the leopard warmly praised the gargoyle, "Xentus will hold on to this, yes?" He was tempted to give the stone being a pat on the head or some other sort of physical affection.. It was easy to have such an impulse toward small creatures, which usually responded to it well anyway. He leaned down and a tentative hand reached out above the gargoyle's head, his eyes carefully gauging its reaction. It had an unmoving facade on its face, nothing that the leopard could read as a negative or positive in the moments before his hand touched the space between its horns. A gentle rub and withdraw. And it seemed.. To neither like or dislike the act. In reality, Varus felt.. Acknowledged. The gesture was one it didn't understand very well. The warden was seeming less like a warden. This development was one that it felt favor toward. Some part of it began to relax.
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Post by Nadia on Oct 20, 2020 9:50:09 GMT -6
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Post by Xentus on Mar 2, 2021 17:14:24 GMT -6
They'd get to understand one another better with time. Xentus hoped to learn more about the runic being and its relationship with the earth. He may not be able to ask it directly, but he could start to read its body, figuring its intentions.. And perhaps it could begin to learn some ways to communicate with him, in return. From this time in the mineshaft together, he already felt that there was something different about it. A little more free. Less guarded. Its time spent in forced captivity didn't help to shape a positive opinion of surface dwellers. Perhaps it was still in captivity with him, but he could only hope it saw some benefit to having his protection. Like how the draconics were his wards. Xentus strived to maintain a kind of guardianship over the intelligent beings in his care. Whether he saw them in the light he tried to portray was a different story.
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Post by Xentus on Mar 2, 2021 17:19:36 GMT -6
Given that Varus was sticking with him, he could only assume that it did like him in some way. It wasn't leashed or bound to him. It could take off into the dark mines, never to be seen again. And it gave him a gift! That gesture alone made his heart swell. Xentus lead the way down the long, dark corridor, crystal torch providing enough light to just barely make out what was before them. It was eerily quiet too.. Aside from his own breathing and the clicking of claws against rock, there wasn't much to hear. Perhaps the occasional creak from the support beams. Or the scattering of dust and pebbles as the earth around them slowly shifted. Varus didn't make for a good subject to have a conversation with, unfortunately. Sure, he could tell it things, but it would never reply or tell him what it thought. The leopard sighed.
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Post by Xentus on Mar 2, 2021 17:40:25 GMT -6
He could.. Perhaps teach it some of the common tongue. This setting didn't feel like the best for language lessons, but if the gargoyle was willing to listen, he could begin to get it accustomed to his voice and speech patterns. And if it picked up on some simple words, he could progress to something more complex. Now that he was starting to cast the idea in his mind, it was beginning to sound more and more like something he wanted to try. After some more exploring, they'd take a break and.. Talk. The leopard nodded to himself, feeling good about this. The pair rounded a wide bend in the path which slowly began sloping downward. Deeper into the earth. He wasn't sure how far down they could possibly be now, but the thought was unnerving.. He didn't want to dwell on it for too long. The chamber around the two grew darker, losing the brown hues of dirt and mud in favor of black granite speckled with grey.
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Post by Xentus on Mar 2, 2021 17:46:53 GMT -6
Their surroundings seemed to grow colder too. Not unbearably so, but enough to notice the slight chill about the air. Xentus paused his descent for a moment to look at Varus, making sure the gargoyle was faring alright despite the changing conditions. Being an earth-dweller, it seemed to be unfazed. It perked up, looking at him in return with its hollowed eye sockets. The blank faced being offered no question or sound. The leopard gave it a gentle smile and a nod, silently acknowledging its current state of 'seems alright'. Up ahead, he could see some kind of faint glow. And perhaps an opening the wall? They'd need to wander closer to find out. Something about the change in scenery did strike the leopard as off though.. He changed his walk to have a lighter touch so not to jostle his equipment so much. His flashlight was turned off in favor of the dim crystal-light. And they pressed forward.
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Post by Xentus on Mar 2, 2021 18:11:25 GMT -6
If it could, the gargoyle would've raised question to the change in the warden's demeanor. Moving quieter. More carefully. Was there something he saw that it did not? Or was it only wariness due to the change in rock layer? Varus contemplated going on and scouting ahead to help put the warden at ease.. But it had no means to communicate back to the man whatever information it gleaned. It would be best to remain as it had.. Or more in tandem. That might reassure the man. Why it felt compelled to do so, it wasn't even certain for itself. But the gargoyle still acted as it saw best fit, making its way to walk beside the leopard instead of behind him. It was light on its feet, imitating the man's more quiet approach as best it could. The leopard's pointed ear flicked to the new direction of claw clicks, peeking down for just a moment to see the gargoyle walking alongside him.
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Post by Jack on Mar 3, 2021 7:59:21 GMT -6
A couple of multi colored stones were in the way
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