[GrayGriffin]

Rewhister had been named for the ocean he dwelt in, a name that he had not regretted or found reason to change for a long time. He was supposed to guard it, after all, or at least this one particular part of it. Yet despite being charged with a duty and doing his best to fulfill it, he still found himself...lonely, somehow.

The feeling of loneliness was strange to him, and he did his best to deny it and push it aside.

[GrayGriffin]

He was a guardian, after all! He could not succumb so easily to soft mortal temptations.

Yet at the same time...was it really a temptation? He had heard of other immortals who found companionship, whether in mortals or in their fellow ageless ones. Surely he could do something like that too?

But...he couldn't leave, could he? He was the guardian of this place, and to guard it he must stay within it. So how would he seek out others?

[GrayGriffin]

Maybe he could wait for them to come to him...? He was a guardian, after all. Surely that meant at times there would be mortals passing through his domain?

Yet when he waited, often those mortals turned out to be the worst sort. The kind that he should banish from his realm with whirlpools and sharp-toothed shadows. They could never stay to keep him company, and even if they did he would resent their presencee.

[GrayGriffin]

He retreated to the study of magic and power, to see if there was any way he could bring more worthy people to his side. And as he tried, he found that he could summon others to him, if he made proper preparation on both ends.

So...there was still the problem, then, of him being restricted to his domain. If he had a companion, he could send them to do preparations in his stead, but this whole problem started because he didn't have one.

[GrayGriffin]

It was only much later, when he was trying and trying to push his magic further, when that power finally came to him. The water around him stirred in a whirlpool, whirling into shape, and then he found that he was looking at himself from two different angles.

A doppelganger...something that could be controlled by him, could leave while he stayed. He actually tried leaving it behind first, but he found it dissolving as he neared the borders of his domain.

[GrayGriffin]

So it seemed that the absolute truth was that he must stay there, to keep his power at the fullest, while his doppelganger did the work above the waves. Of course, in a way it was him, so there shouldn't have been any jealousy there.

Yet jealousy dug at him anyways. He wasn't foolish enough to actually take it out on the doppelganger, not when any sensation directed at it reflected slightly onto him anyways, and it would simply dissolve back into the ocean if too injured.

[GrayGriffin]

That latter fact had been discovered when he was trying to discipline a fleet of ships that were somewhat out of his domain, but within his doppelganger's reach. Yet the powers he had could not be fully summoned, and his doppelganger had dissolved when a harpoon pierced through it. That also proved it didn't have the same level of resilience he did.

After that, he was much more careful with it. He fashioned it clothing, of a sort, so it could travel on land and draw only mild levels of suspicion instead of exotic fascination.

[GrayGriffin]

Rewhister soon found a perfect location to summon others to him. It was deep enough so that not every casual passerby would find it, and shallow enough that someone would notice it eventually. The divinations he'd done also told him that area was the best to find someone actually compatible with him.

There was a side effect of making the location glow, but he figured it was fine. The additional spells he'd attached would prevent undesirables from actually activating the portal.

[GrayGriffin]

Now all that was left was to make preparations for receiving his guests, not just calling them to him. Not knowing if they'd breathe water like him or have those strange breathing apparatuses some landbound creatures used, he created a bubble of air where they would be able to talk without having to worry about the supply of air in their apparatus. He sent his doppelganger into libraries and bookstores to find what he should prepare when receiving a guest, and then sent it to hunt them down.

And then all there was left to do was wait.

[GrayGriffin]

He was notified, a few times, of others stirring his portal, but for a long while none of them managed to actually activate it. Some came by who fit his desired profile, but they also never touched it long enough to activate it. Part of him wondered if he should do something to make it easier to activate, and then...

Finally, he felt the stirring that said someone had activated his portal. Eagerly, he snaked his way to the receiving area, which had already been set up within the bubble. Sitting down at the table the best he could with his body shape, he waited for his guests and companions to finally arrive.

[Wild Pet Found]