AVIARY
The Gryphon Stones

A fifth section of the immense cavern unfolds before you as you enter, glowing with the light of the sunroof above bouncing off of obsidian walls light ripples in a pool of night....

A tiny indentation in the sands lay ahead of you, filled with the cracked remanants of a golden egg. The shards glint in the sun and you sheild your eyes from a particularly harsh glare and move forward....tripping head over heals into an ornately decorated box! You scramble up and grab up the offending box, flipping the beautifully carved lid up and pearing inside....

....and there you find toys! Two small stuffed gryphons that must be meant for the little one to play with! Hanging from the ears of each one are tiny gold tags with words on them. You pick up the first, wolf-like one, and read, "Araxie, Beta male of the Hidden Sun." On another, more hawk-like black beanie, the tag reads, "Karayan, Queen female of the Hidden Sun." The third and final grey-ish beanie reads "From The Hidden Sun To You, Young Gryphon, For We Are Proud." The first two, you realize, must be replicas of two of the original Hidden Sun members! The third beanie, having no name, is just a gift then, to the baby gryphon no longer inside its egg. And very finely crafted as well! You replace the box where you found it and turn to leave, th inkingthat the baby will not want to be disturbed whenever it returns. Plus, you are at a lack for time and want to move on. Perhaps the little one will be here later....

"Hold!"

You stop in your tracks and whip around, feet sliding in the sand. You land with a thump on your rear and cry out as you vision is suddenly filled with the hawk-like face of the now-present resident of these parts.

"Who be you? Unfold yourself..." The odd creature still stares you down as you stammer out your name and that you are nothing but a simply tourist come to visit the gryphon you'd heard of. The young gryphon seems stunned. "You have heard tell of me? From whom, intruder?"

You say that the Hold is abuzz with news of a gryphon caretaker of a newly-arrived egg...and Odd COuple they say, this gryphon and a baby creature's egg. You hear that this gryphon is honorable and honest, even if he can be rude and violent at times. People wonder how he came to care for any living creature, for he's not one to be swayed in his ways. This one is said to be smart and well-spoken, open and loving when he wants, but only when he wants. It was said that from the time the little one was born, he has seemed like two different gryphon's trapped in one body. At this, the young one laughs, eyes seeming ancient for his age, but full of true mirth none the less. "I feel the same way at times!" He proclaims.

"I like you, travellor. You are an intruder no more, and let us be friends." He moves away and extends a soft fore-foot and you accept it, first shaking it, then letting him pull you up to your feet. He sweeps back on deep black wings to where a mound of sand protrudes from the smoothed surface around it, surrounded by sharp stones and thorny branches to protect it from small predators. His black wings shine almost as much as the egg he carefully uncovers.....

He runs a paw over the surface of the egg, worrying it with a fatherly demeanor that you never expected from one like him. Then that 'two gryphons in one body' thing comes back to you. Perhaps this is his nicer side coming to the fore. He looks up after a few moments and tells about his shiny prize. "This is the egg of a Fire Devi, a creature of Savine, my homelands. Devi are small reptiles with wings. They have a very grand history, dating to the beginnings of Savine itself. When humans first came from the dream world, the Devi were the strength of Savine and formed bonds and friendships with these newcomers. But as so many other times, war broke loose the bonds and destroyed the grandieur of the Devi. But they survive on with each tiny egg....." He smiles a delighted smile and carefully begins covering the egg again with the warm sands all around it.

Once the egg is secure, he moves closer to you and continues. "The Devi come in many different forms. The egg kept here is a Fire Egg. We will not know what sort or gender it is until the shell is cracked. He or she could be smoke, sun, lava, or flame. All the fFire Devi are warriors, hunters, and ometimes even sky-dancers. The young one will have a firce spirit! Perhaps that is why the Lady Az gifted me with this responsibility....

He moves off into his own thoughts for a long moment, and you ask where the egg came from. "Oh...it arrived from the ChiGoldenPlain only a few days ago. When it hatches, I am to call Az immediately, as the little one will want a human to bond to, and then after it is old enough I will train it to be strong, a true warrior and a cunning hunter..."

He quiets, alert again, and you are getting up to move on, when you realize that you have not even learned the gryphon's name! You ask if he even has one and he smiles proudly. "Yes! I have at last found one to fit me, given me by the most honorable Lady Talonshawk! I am Seylee'dir'mikatali, or Midnight's Mayhem in the human tongue. I bid you farewell travel - may the spirit and strength of the gryphon stones be with you always..."

With that wish of luck at your back, you take your leave of the handsome young gryphon, wishing him luck and merriness forever and promising to come and visit as he grows.....

SEYLEE'S GENOTYPE AND STATS Head: f*, H (hawk) Wings: m, c* (mix) Fore-Feet: c, n* (cat) Rear-Feet: C, h (cat) Ears: c*, h (hawk) Tail: C, h (cat) Fur: L, V* (leopard) Feather: B, B (black) Sire: Araxie (Beta) Dame: Astrid (Third) Origin: The Hidden Sun

THE SCRAPBOOK

Our New Fire Devi Egg Was Adopted from:
ChiGoldenPlain

Devi originally from the Devi Forest ~ Savine