06-30-2018, 11:33 PM
Ciolan cannot remember how long he has traveled alone now.
It may have only been a few days, a few hours, a few mere moments. To him, every second seems to last an eternity. Every breath is a day’s length; every ruffle of his gills is a rotation of the moon above. For a creature so gigantic, so leviathan, time passes as slowly or as quickly as he chooses to perceive it. But time had never really mattered to Ciolan, so keeping track of it always fell by the wayside, into the aphotic depths of his consciousness.
Time is rather meaningless when one spends their time alone. And he had always been alone, ever since the first time he opened his eyes. He’d been born self-sufficient (or had he been born at all? Had he simply sparked into existence?) and he has never had to rely on anyone else. At times, this could be a rather desolate way to live, swirling through greenish-blue waters of his world without companionship. For him, it had always simply <i>been</i>.
There were other creatures, of course - smaller fish, porpoises, turtles, gulls - but none of them stayed with him for long. Most were too afraid of his massive size and dagger-like jaws, but most simply had their own mortal lives to lead. Thus, many of his days were spent in silence amid the warm and swirling waters, reveling in the way they sparkled against his silver-green veil-like fins that wafted about his gigantic body in his gentle manner. Despite his gigantic size and serpentine body, Ciolan was never known to be a violent creature. Although he feeds on the fish of the sea, he has never quite been viewed as an enemy or a threat, for he chooses his prey wisely and conservatively. No one has ever faulted him for that. It’s simply the way of the ocean.
But in all his travels, he has never come across another leviathan like himself. He has come to believe he is the only one, and while he does spend time with some of the other creatures around him, he longs for a more permanent friend to share his paradise with. His gargantuan size makes him frightening to others, his fins and fangs frighten away even the whales who are large enough not to become his prey; he wanders and he wallows after all this solitary time and his sorrowful songs are answered by none.
Perhaps he is searching in the wrong place? Perhaps this is an instance when water and land must meet and meld?
He swims through a violet twilight that soaks the ocean in a strange murky brown light. The moonlight still glimmers through the waves like lace but Ciolan slithers through it alone, gigantic and somewhat sad that no one has answered his calls. The surface of the water whirls above him and the gulls overhead, following him in the hopes that he is hunting for a shoal of fish, can see the shimmering gleam of his scales even in the fading light. He is easy for their beady eyes to follow and even they can hear his sorrowful songs seeking friendship as they hover low over the calm ocean surface.
His draconic face easily parts the water and the currents of the ocean; his crocodilian maw sucks in the water and filters it easily through his gills; his serpentine eyes make easy work of the murky light. Ciolan navigates the tides easier than any sailor of legend. His emerald scales gleam and flash in the moonlight that rises gently but he mentally sighs and eventually lifts his head above the surface of the water for just a moment, enough so that he can lift his golden eyes to the stars below.
Briefly he wonders what his purpose is, if he truly is alone, if he would ever have a long-lasting friend...Is he condemned to be a giant of the seas, something that other creatures fear? Often, he wanders to the banks, nosing the crabs and snails from their hiding places along the shorelines just for the fun of watching the scuttle or slither away and stir up the sand. Tonight, however, as the sparkling waters glide over his fins and the spines along his back and the waves lap softly at his scales, he can feel a different sort of vibration in the pits on his chin.
Something soft and small (larger than the usual critters of the ocean but still smaller than him ((then again, everything is smaller than him))), he peeks his head curiously above the surface. It is difficult to see, but there is a small shadow wandering there. It has four wobbling legs and its head is bowed toward the tidepools. It is quiet and it seems as lonesome as he is. It is black like the parts of reefs where the light doesn’t touch and its feet make no sounds as it walks, though there are footprints in the said, though they are raised as if the sand is being depressed from underneath.
Ciolan watches for a moment or two before his intrigue gets the better of him. With a momentary breath of ocean water, he lifts his head higher and exhales a misty haze into the air below.
In just a few more moments, he hears a mild struggle in the sand and a friendly smirk spreads over his fanged maw. Slowly, a young filly appears in solid form just where the shadow had been. Her coat is a rich color of brown and her gray eyes stare around with confusion as her mouth hangs open in wonder.
Ciolan recedes into the water just enough so that she cannot see him and he watches her as she stumbles for a moment and regains her bearings, staring up-down into the sky and down-up at the ground. And then Ciolan stirs the water so that she might see him. She freezes and he decides it might be time to announce himself rather than frighten her further.
“Hello,” he speaks to her telepathically, although he does not know this is her first encounter with such magic. A cursory glimpse of her mind tells him enough about her and he continues: “Will you keep me company? I have traveled so long and so alone. I chose you, Pond, to come along with me.”
He believes that she is a gentle soul like him and he is curious to see what she makes of his world, and what he can learn from her.
He opens his mouth and wraps her gently with his serpentine tongue, taking her into his mouth so that he may take her away to share in some of his adventures with him.
“It will be okay, little one,” he assures her as they descend.
It may have only been a few days, a few hours, a few mere moments. To him, every second seems to last an eternity. Every breath is a day’s length; every ruffle of his gills is a rotation of the moon above. For a creature so gigantic, so leviathan, time passes as slowly or as quickly as he chooses to perceive it. But time had never really mattered to Ciolan, so keeping track of it always fell by the wayside, into the aphotic depths of his consciousness.
Time is rather meaningless when one spends their time alone. And he had always been alone, ever since the first time he opened his eyes. He’d been born self-sufficient (or had he been born at all? Had he simply sparked into existence?) and he has never had to rely on anyone else. At times, this could be a rather desolate way to live, swirling through greenish-blue waters of his world without companionship. For him, it had always simply <i>been</i>.
There were other creatures, of course - smaller fish, porpoises, turtles, gulls - but none of them stayed with him for long. Most were too afraid of his massive size and dagger-like jaws, but most simply had their own mortal lives to lead. Thus, many of his days were spent in silence amid the warm and swirling waters, reveling in the way they sparkled against his silver-green veil-like fins that wafted about his gigantic body in his gentle manner. Despite his gigantic size and serpentine body, Ciolan was never known to be a violent creature. Although he feeds on the fish of the sea, he has never quite been viewed as an enemy or a threat, for he chooses his prey wisely and conservatively. No one has ever faulted him for that. It’s simply the way of the ocean.
But in all his travels, he has never come across another leviathan like himself. He has come to believe he is the only one, and while he does spend time with some of the other creatures around him, he longs for a more permanent friend to share his paradise with. His gargantuan size makes him frightening to others, his fins and fangs frighten away even the whales who are large enough not to become his prey; he wanders and he wallows after all this solitary time and his sorrowful songs are answered by none.
Perhaps he is searching in the wrong place? Perhaps this is an instance when water and land must meet and meld?
He swims through a violet twilight that soaks the ocean in a strange murky brown light. The moonlight still glimmers through the waves like lace but Ciolan slithers through it alone, gigantic and somewhat sad that no one has answered his calls. The surface of the water whirls above him and the gulls overhead, following him in the hopes that he is hunting for a shoal of fish, can see the shimmering gleam of his scales even in the fading light. He is easy for their beady eyes to follow and even they can hear his sorrowful songs seeking friendship as they hover low over the calm ocean surface.
His draconic face easily parts the water and the currents of the ocean; his crocodilian maw sucks in the water and filters it easily through his gills; his serpentine eyes make easy work of the murky light. Ciolan navigates the tides easier than any sailor of legend. His emerald scales gleam and flash in the moonlight that rises gently but he mentally sighs and eventually lifts his head above the surface of the water for just a moment, enough so that he can lift his golden eyes to the stars below.
Briefly he wonders what his purpose is, if he truly is alone, if he would ever have a long-lasting friend...Is he condemned to be a giant of the seas, something that other creatures fear? Often, he wanders to the banks, nosing the crabs and snails from their hiding places along the shorelines just for the fun of watching the scuttle or slither away and stir up the sand. Tonight, however, as the sparkling waters glide over his fins and the spines along his back and the waves lap softly at his scales, he can feel a different sort of vibration in the pits on his chin.
Something soft and small (larger than the usual critters of the ocean but still smaller than him ((then again, everything is smaller than him))), he peeks his head curiously above the surface. It is difficult to see, but there is a small shadow wandering there. It has four wobbling legs and its head is bowed toward the tidepools. It is quiet and it seems as lonesome as he is. It is black like the parts of reefs where the light doesn’t touch and its feet make no sounds as it walks, though there are footprints in the said, though they are raised as if the sand is being depressed from underneath.
Ciolan watches for a moment or two before his intrigue gets the better of him. With a momentary breath of ocean water, he lifts his head higher and exhales a misty haze into the air below.
In just a few more moments, he hears a mild struggle in the sand and a friendly smirk spreads over his fanged maw. Slowly, a young filly appears in solid form just where the shadow had been. Her coat is a rich color of brown and her gray eyes stare around with confusion as her mouth hangs open in wonder.
Ciolan recedes into the water just enough so that she cannot see him and he watches her as she stumbles for a moment and regains her bearings, staring up-down into the sky and down-up at the ground. And then Ciolan stirs the water so that she might see him. She freezes and he decides it might be time to announce himself rather than frighten her further.
“Hello,” he speaks to her telepathically, although he does not know this is her first encounter with such magic. A cursory glimpse of her mind tells him enough about her and he continues: “Will you keep me company? I have traveled so long and so alone. I chose you, Pond, to come along with me.”
He believes that she is a gentle soul like him and he is curious to see what she makes of his world, and what he can learn from her.
He opens his mouth and wraps her gently with his serpentine tongue, taking her into his mouth so that he may take her away to share in some of his adventures with him.
“It will be okay, little one,” he assures her as they descend.