[SpringsSong]

The Sygriff had not been out and about for several months; that was certainly the truth.  In fact, there was some debate as to if she had been in some sort of freak state of hibernation instead of just avoiding the world, as everyone seemed to believe she was.  As far as she was concerned, they were not going to find out if she was avoiding the outside world or if she was hibernating.  She was out and about now, and that was all that mattered.

There was only one thing that had drawn the Sygriff out from her hole, though, and those were rumors of a being called the Temple Guardian.

The Sygriff was naturally curious, especially when it came to temples and legends and lore.  If there were rumors of a legend, chances are she was among one of the first there to investigate it herself.  Sometimes, she even found out about the legends and rumors before they even began to circulate at large.

Judging from the empty state of the Shrine, she was the first one here.

[1.2]

[SpringsSong]

The so-called Temple Guardian was hidden deep within the Shrine, and he certainly looked like he belonged there--after all, he was a Temple pet.  He had been resting here for goodness only knew how long, and he had been left undisturbed.  Hunters?  He'd heard of them.  He'd heard of their Leader, and he'd heard of the people who had come here to hunt these Hunters.

They were of little to no concern for the Temple Yonyuu.  As long as people did not disturb him, he would be fine.

The Yonyuu put his tail over his nose as he curled into a tighter ball than he was already in, using his wings to cover his face from view as well.  Anyone who had the luck to get to his particular section of the Shrine would just see a variagated stone there, unless they had an incredibly discerning eye.  There weren't many people like that, however; those who did managed to find his section of the Shrine always overlooked him there.

What he was not expecting was the slightly familiar aura that he was feeling at the entrance of the Shrine that was causing him now to awaken and look more as a statue instead of a stone.

"Could it be...?"

[1.2]

[SpringsSong]

The Sygriff had barely taken a few steps into the temple when she stopped dead in her tracks, an overwhelmingly familiar feeling overtaking her as she looked around the Shrine, trying to see if she could place the feeling.  However, no matter how hard she tried to place the feeling, she could not quite place it.  Whatever it was, it was going to drive her mad if she could not figure out what it was.

It's been forever since I felt a feeling like this... the Sygriff thought silently to herself; In fact, I would reckon that the last time I felt like this was before I went into my period of isolation.  I need to find where this aura is coming from... she added as she continued to investigate the first part of the temple.  However, her investigations weren't leading her very far as she was only finding runes that spoke about the Hunters.

"Hm... 'Tread carefully, Traveler; here is where the Hunters lie; the Hunters who were sent to find the Eyes of Iiylumiel by the Death God, Xai're.  If one approaches you, guard your mind closely; they will ask you to give up something dear to you in order for them to be freed'... so this must be the Shrine where the Hunters reside.  I wonder if I'll find one?" she asked herself, turning away for a second.

"What is this feeling, though?" she asked herself in a foreign tongue.  "It feels like I've felt this aura before, but this aura was always shoved out of my life, and I was always told that it would poison me... and yet, it feels the exact opposite..."

[1.4]

[SpringsSong]

The Yonyuu was no stranger to the movements he felt within the Shrine, even though he was generally a stranger to the people that moved within the Shrine.  Now that he was being exposed to this familiar aura, the Temple Guardian was more than just a little confused as to how to this could be.  This particular aura had never entered the temple before.

The only thing that confused him more was the fact that she was fluent in the very language he spoke!

"This... this is not possible," he said half-aloud.  "I've never encountered someone who could speak my language... especially not fluently."

Part of the Yonyuu wanted to stand up and go and meet this familiar stranger, and yet, he found himself unable to move--as if he was frozen from the neck down.  He sighed as he pressed his wings to his back, trying his best not to seem too distressed.

"How can I get her to come here... how can I get her attention?" he asked himself frantically, realizing that one of his paws was positioned on a crack in the stone.  His eyes followed the crack and realized that it probably lead out of his room and to where the presence was, so he allowed some of his energy to flow from his paw and reach out to the crack.  As soon as it started to glow blue, he knew that he would be able to reach her.

[1.4]

[SpringsSong]

Of all the odd things that had happened from the time she had set foot into this temple, Haeronalda decided that this was decidedly the strangest.  She saw the beam of blue energy head straight for her claw, and once it got there, it followed her claw no matter where she moved it.  She held her wings close to her as she tried to figure out what exactly she was supposed to do about this.

She took a step back first.  The claws that were not "attached" to the beam of energy went back, but the one that was attached to it was not allowed to move back.

"I guess this means I am supposed to follow the beam of energy... it could be a trap, or it could mean something else... if I cannot leave, I may as well follow it and see if I can be released from it," she said to herself, taking a tentative step in the direction that the beam of energy had come from.

[1.6]