Rory
"A very good healer and a lot of luck," Ronin confessed, and Rory twirled a piece of Bakshi's mane between his fingers. It was habit, and soothing; whenever there wasn't a pony around he ended up very obviously fidgeting instead.
Luck, indeed. Of course, there had been survivors before, but usually because they had legged it before the monster got to them as well. If it actually got a hold of you, well... Rory studied Ronin for a moment. A very good healer. Isla, perhaps? But he did not ask, just let the implication sit in his mind: Ronin had been injured by the guardian. And someone had been able to put him back together.
It was impressive, to say the least. He even wanted to call it hopeful, but this change, even if it would turn out to be good, was too sudden. So he chose not to think about it for now.
"We've never seen any droppings or anything indicating it processes food, and it's always here so it's not like it can leave to forage either. I remember stories of my great-great-grandmother and some of her friends antagonizing it in shifts, just to see if it'd get tired. It didn't. It was pointless and costly in lives and limbs, so they stopped after a few days."
He sighed. Was it alive? It was obviously sentient to some degree and moved—like an animal. But it did very little except guard the Spire. It had no mate, no offspring, and nothing in the stories indicating it was anything but the same creature that had been there three hundred years ago. It reminded him a little of the Ascended. Were they alive, strictly speaking?
"Ronin," he said after a moment, trying the name out. Then he snorted. "Ronin, Remi, and Rory. Sounds like a bunch of kids being up to no good." He wasn't sure if their sense of humor worked as his, but he found it amusing, and Remi's beaming smile was enough to make him feel strange things about this unexpected apparent friendship. He wasn't really used to such a fresh optimism. "I'm sure many people have, but as far as I know, it's been a while since anyone did a concentrated effort. I bet there's records and journals in the Atheneum, if you can get in there. Maybe someone in the settlement knows more."
Luck, indeed. Of course, there had been survivors before, but usually because they had legged it before the monster got to them as well. If it actually got a hold of you, well... Rory studied Ronin for a moment. A very good healer. Isla, perhaps? But he did not ask, just let the implication sit in his mind: Ronin had been injured by the guardian. And someone had been able to put him back together.
It was impressive, to say the least. He even wanted to call it hopeful, but this change, even if it would turn out to be good, was too sudden. So he chose not to think about it for now.
"We've never seen any droppings or anything indicating it processes food, and it's always here so it's not like it can leave to forage either. I remember stories of my great-great-grandmother and some of her friends antagonizing it in shifts, just to see if it'd get tired. It didn't. It was pointless and costly in lives and limbs, so they stopped after a few days."
He sighed. Was it alive? It was obviously sentient to some degree and moved—like an animal. But it did very little except guard the Spire. It had no mate, no offspring, and nothing in the stories indicating it was anything but the same creature that had been there three hundred years ago. It reminded him a little of the Ascended. Were they alive, strictly speaking?
"Ronin," he said after a moment, trying the name out. Then he snorted. "Ronin, Remi, and Rory. Sounds like a bunch of kids being up to no good." He wasn't sure if their sense of humor worked as his, but he found it amusing, and Remi's beaming smile was enough to make him feel strange things about this unexpected apparent friendship. He wasn't really used to such a fresh optimism. "I'm sure many people have, but as far as I know, it's been a while since anyone did a concentrated effort. I bet there's records and journals in the Atheneum, if you can get in there. Maybe someone in the settlement knows more."
