[Matt]

Why was he here? What was this place? Who was he?
All questions the so-called Argus had no answers for- which was the most frustrating of all. He growled to himself, shaking his majestic ice-blue and black metal head with an annoyed grunt. The cave opening loomed in front of the large Khimera, and his pelt stood out like white against black. Argus stalked into the cave, followed by a rather large shadow.

Andy had been sent to hunt for something called an 'Akail' in these Caverns. But, along the way, he'd spotted the large Khimera, stalking around the entrance to the caves. As Andy had a rather large intelligence, he had landed in the forest-line nearby, his black scales blending into the shadows. Finally, the Khimera had gone into the cave, and Andy padded after him, walking on all fours to fit into the cave. He folded his wings to his sides; the only thing that anyone could possibly see of the Paragon in the cave was the strange red heart on his chest- and his brilliant gold eyes.

[[Private; Maelstrom and I]]

[Maelstrom]

The red and white paragon slammed into the ground in a rather violent landing, coming to rest in a four-legged crouch. A second, much smaller figure drifted like a leaf through the air after him and gently touched down next to the large Paragon. The two admittedly mismatched companions rested for a moment before entering Craiss Caverns. Well, at least the organic one did - the other examined the cave opening and the nearby terrain.

It would have been difficult for an observer to determine which of the two was of flesh and blood, and which of metal in a casual glance. A second look would have focused on the unnaturally glowing eyes and green liquid abdomen of the smaller yonyuu. Someone with sharper senses might have noticed that his chest did not rise and fall with breath or he smelled like metal and chemicals. Nothing else gave him away; his movements were fluid and natural, and fur and synthetic flesh added to the illusion.

The yonyuu tilted his head to side as he examined his companion - heartbeat and respiration were nearly normal. The paragon would soon be ready to venture into the Caverns.

"The area's heat signature indicates two lifeforms recently passed through."

"What'd I need to know that for? If they wanna jump us, we'll just beat 'em up. Hope they do - I could use a good fight."

The yonyuu mused on this fresh example of his companion's lack of regard for his own life as the pair entered the cave, going deeper underground.

[Matt]

Argus raised his head. He was only a ways into the cavern- not in enough to simply look over the loud voices coming from the entrance. The Khimera turned, padding along the wall cautiously, back to the entrance. Finally, he spotted them- a red and white Paragon, and a Yonyuu. The lion-like creature stalked, low to the ground, towards the pair, finally leaping out with a roar. "Who goes there?"

Andy jumped, his heart beating faster. Had Argus spotted him? Or... who was he talking to, anyway? The undead Paragon turned, narrowing his inquisitive gold eyes to see a Yonyuu... and another Paragon! But it didn't seem the proper time to leap out- after all, the Khimera wasn't taking the soft approach.

[Maelstrom]

The pair had taken only a few steps into the dim twilight of the dank Caverns before being stopped by a large, impressive looking khimera who demanded their names. The yonyuu studied the khimera, analyzing it and comparing the results to his considerable database of information. He concluded that khimera were usually competant fighters and the appropriate course of action was to negotiate rather than engage in combat. He felt no fear; caution was an appropriate response, but fear was unneccessary and detrimental in fulfilling commands, according to his designers.

Narrowing his eyes and feeling the hyper-awareness that preceeded a good fight, the Paragon gave a large dragon-grin at the prospect of battle. He was in no mood (ever, if he wanted to be particularly honest with himself) to forego the chance to push his own limits, and his pride was not about to let him back down.

"What business is it of yours?" questioned a neutral voice. His concentration broken by his companion, the paragon huffed and glared at the yonyuu, who gave no sign that he noticed. The clockwork pet merely returned his gaze calmly and continued to study the khimera.

[Matt]

Argus raised an eyebrow, twitching his tails. The blood-like substance, a blackish-brown color, seemed to speed up a bit, and Argus gave the pair a satisfied smile. He smelled... caution. "It is my business..." He stepped forward, and the dim light coming into the cave entrance lit up his brilliant blue and brown pelt. "Because I am king, and these are my Caverns."

Andy tilted his head to one side, the heart on his chest glowing a bit too brightly for his liking. King? What was this guy's problem? Who made him king of the caverns? After all, Akail lived in here, didn't they? Was he king of them, too? The Paragon narrowed his eyes, making up his mind. After the odd pair replied to this outlandish sentence, Andy would step up and reveal himself.

[Maelstrom]

King? The paragon's dragon-grin shifted in a flash to a silent snarl. No way I'm taking orders from any jumped-up wannabe king! His posture shifted from relaxed but ready to a tense slight crouch. This had now gone beyond just having a decent fight; now it was personal. No one, least of all some king told him what to do! He opened his mouth to tell this khimera just what he thought of him - when he was once more interrupted.

"According to land use records, these Caverns remain public land. Your knowledge seems to be in error, Mister...?

His yonyuu companion regarded him with a hint of amusement and strained tolerance. Not impatience or annoyance - those emotions had been deemed inconvenient. After all, a good servant should have the patience to see to all of its master's whims, even the most petty.

[Matt]

Argus raised his eyebrows, snarling playfully. "What? The big lizard wants to play?" He chuckled, his white pupiless eyes glowing earily in the dark. The Khimera turned his head towards the Yonyuu, focusing on the thing instead of the Paragon. "Oh, I'm in error? Excuse me, I assure you, you, my mechanical friend, are incorrect." Argus flicked his tail out, laying the mechanical claw-like tail tip on the Yonyuu's shoulder. "Don't feel too bad about it, though. Everyone makes mistakes..." Argus sneered, chuckling to himself. "Forgive me for being so late in introducing myself," he said, bowing a bit with a flourish and a quickening of the gross black blood in his 'tails' and neck. He straightened to his full height, making him a few feet taller than your general lion... either way, he was pretty impressive. "I have no name, but you may call me King Argus." Thus, Argus turned, snapping his odd eyes towards Andy. "You! Friend of the one who seeks the wild beast... come out of the shadows."

Andy crept out of hiding, gaping as he recognized the Khimera before him. "Argus! You're actually here? Thank the gods!" The undead Paragon romped forward, headbutting the Khimera playfully. "Did you fall from the sky too?" Argus raised an eyebrow, chuckling. "I came from the ground. Apparently, it depends on who wishes to fly, and those who wish to disappear..." Andy frowned, patting Argus' back and padding towards the Yonyuu and Paragon pair. "Hello! I'm am Andy Loveheart, brother and companion to Pima Loveheart." He grinned, his healthy white teeth flashing in the flickers of light that happened to penetrate the darkness.

[Maelstrom]

The Red Voidbringer was definitely not amused at all, the deep rumbling growl in his chest clear proof. Lizard? He would do much more than play before he was through with this clown!
The yonyuu raised an eyebrow once more. He found the likelihood that his data was incorrect a very low percentage, but since the unknown khimera seemed rather insistent that he was king of the Caverns, the yonyuu decided to avoid that particular battle and let the delusional male believe that he had won.

Neither the paragon or the yonyuu were particularly impressed by the Khimera's posturing, the clockwork because he recognized it as such, and the paragon simply because he was so incandescent with rage at being mocked that he was long past rational thinking. In fact, it might have ended badly for all parties involved had the khimera 'Argus' not turned and begun speaking to a deep pool of shadow. The yonyuu was hardly surprised, since his sensors had already informed him of the second individual's presence. Though to see another paragon, hardly a common breed, did surprise him for a moment. On the other hand, the shift was so sudden that the red Voidbringer was snapped out of his rage, utterly flabbergasted. Luckily, the yonyuu still had control of his faculties and calmly nodded a greeting to the Deserthorn.

“A pleasure to meet you, Mr. Loveheart. I am Narsilion, and my Paragon companion is called Thanatos.”

“Than, darnit,” muttered the paragon under his breath, “Thanatos sounds like some stuck-up prat’s name.”

[Matt]

Argus chuckled, smiling a lion-like smile. "I like the Yonyuu better," he said, shouldering Andy with a smirk. Andy coughed, stepping towards Than. "I haven't have the pleasure to meet many others of my kind... what breed of Paragon are you, may I ask? I am called a Memory Paragon, due to my memory of the different world from which I came. I believe I was transformed from the form of a bear to the form of a Paragon," he said, blushing as he realized he was rambling on. "Excuse me for mumbling on about my origins. I would just like to ask," he said, stepping back in-case the two lashed out at what Andy thought was a ridiculous idea at the time. "Would you two help myself and Argus find an Akail?"

Argus narrowed his eyes, the black blood in his tail and chest glowing a faint grey. "What?"

[Maelstrom]

Than snorted; he did not particularly care if this whack-job of a king liked his tin-can babysitter better than him. In fact, it was perfectly peachy. You don't have to feel bad about hitting someone who didn't even like you. Andy seemed like a guy he could come to like, not at all like Argus-I'm-king-so-bow-to-me Khimera. Anyone who thought headbuts were a great way to say hello couldn't be all bad in Than's book. "Umm, I suppose I'm just a Voidbringer Paragon. You're from a different world? Cool! But what's a bhair?"

Akail? Weren't those supposed to be ferocious, dangerous beasts? "I'm in." And all the better if it ticked off His Highnessness. His yonyuu companion was intrigued by the request for entirely different reasons. "The Caverns are said to be full of knowlege. Perhaps the knowlege that I seek lies within them. I will also accompany you."

[Matt]

Andy grinned, wagging his tail like a happy dog. "A Voidbringer? Fascinating. And yes, I do believe I am from another world. I remember it well... and there was snow. I love snow," Andy said, his eyes glazing over with favorite memories. "A bear?" The Paragon chuckled, not at Tha, but himself. "I'm sorry, I suppose you don't have bears here... ah... think a Wombear, but a few times larger, if you're talking about a Grizzly Bear. If you think about the smaller bears, such as Black and Honey bears, they're about the same size as a Wombear," concluded Andy, smiling to himself.

The Paragon's heart design on his chest gave off a happy pinkish glow when the two agreed to help him get an Akail. "Wonderful! I suppose I should tell you why I'd like to find one, yes? Well, my sister, Pima, has been wanting one for a while- she loves those kinds of ferocious creatures. Not to mention that a rather good friend of mine-you might have heard of him, Tentan Starfleet ring a bell?-would like to study one. He's mainly a professor of biology, and he has an... ah... love of snakes." Andy grinned, shifting his wings with an impatient air. "Well, Argus? Do you wanna come?"

Argus growled, flicking his tails with a queasy look about him. ".... I'll make an appearance," he said grumpily. "But don't expect me to be nice with Mr. Lizard over there," he added, snickering. Andy sighed, rolling his eyes and turning to the darkness. "Well, let's go!" With that, the Paragon skipped into the darkness like a happy dog, with Argus traveling a few feet behind him.

[[xD Andy's so fun to RP.]]

[Maelstrom]

"Snow? Yeah, snow's pretty wicked - crashland in the stuff and it hurts a lot less." The Paragon spoke from bountiful experience - Narsilion once calculated that Thanatos had more near-death experiences in six months than an average individual had in their lifetime. He seemed doubtful of the 'bear' part (wombear were cuddly and fluffy - Paragon not so much), but decided to take Andy's word for it.

Andy's glowing heart attracted fascinated stares from Narsilion and Than. Than stared rather horrified by the girlyness of it (skulls were considered an appropriately 'manly' marking). The yonyuu was merely intrigued at the thought of new data and occupied himself explaining the biological processes behind it. Only Narsilion paid attention to the conversation following, Than's attention still wrapped up in nightmares of floating pink hearts. "I am familiar with Professor Starfleet's work in herpetology, though I am unfamiliar with the professor himself," confirmed the clockwork pet.

Than managed to jerk himself away from his occupation in time to gloat at Argus' grumpiness, until he realized that he would have to put up with the Khimera for the whole trip. The large male sulked as the pair followed Andy and Argus into the Caverns.

[Matt]

Andy chuckled at Than's comment on snow- after all, most of the people Andy knew were always at home with spouses or children... or both, in the case of Tentan. Andy almost growled when he realized Than was staring, with a particularly mocking aura about him, at the heart on his chest. "If you must know, my heart's under there. Would you prefer to see that one?" Andy frowned, turning his head back forwards-he'd turned it back to look at Than and the Yonyuu. "Tentan is much nicer than the usual professor, actually. Off on some adventure currently, actually. Something about an Egyptian curse or something or other..."

While Andy was babbling on, Argus was crouching in a corner, his eye on a small Anura. He chuckled and sat down, relaxing his muscles. Suddenly, the end of his tail speared the poor creature. Argus moved his tail to his mouth, and he licked off the Anura remains with a satisfied grin. Andy caught the act and grimaced, shifting his wings uncomfortably as Angus turned to the three and stalked towards them. He chuckled, a glint in his eye. "Want some?" He put out his tail, which was still dripping with the leftover bits of blood and guts.

[[Weee~ Gore!]]

[Maelstrom]

"Well, if you insist. But I think you'd kinda need it, right?" Than had no objection offhand to hearts, since they could be symbols of life, death etc. But the paragon had almost a phobia of the color pink, and it was the pink that his male ego protested about. Not to mention that he had a demi-godly ability to stick his foot in his mouth.  As usual, Narsilion attempted to draw attention away from Than's blunder. "I was not aware that the Professor had become involved in that affair. It does not match his usual area of interest, according to my database. Is he assisting a friend, perhaps?"

Narsilion broke off his line of questioning, his face twisted in an expression of distaste. His emotions were usually muted so they didn't get in the way of his functioning, but the particular brutality Argus displayed was enough to awaken a potent disgust. "No thank you," he replied."

Thanatos looked on without much of a reaction; he got into enough fights to barely turn a hair at all but the worst carnage. "Nah, I just ate. Besides, I don't want something you've touched."