Dirt Breaks The Hivemind

Eithne approaches dreamtime, usual dreams give way into a cold wet nose, now familiar that bumps against her furry side. These transitions are getting easier these days, as images flood in and are processed. Somewhere new this time it seems, not that, that isn't new. Dirt's familiar, odd painted look, manages a magnificent grin, his stick-like tail waggling, waiting for a response.

Eithne shakes herself as she slides into the dreamscape once more, stance dropping as she goes from biped to quadruped for whatever hijinks her Teacher has in mind this time. There's a slight headtilt at the rather obvious lead in, and she gives voice to the thought a moment later, even as her red furred coyote hide finishes being shook into existence; "What's the plan for tonight, then, Teacher? I half expected to 'wake' into something like an ink storm, or a subtle trick."

"No tricks, just... look." he says, pointing to the area surrounding them. An image almost too intricate to see up close, like origami with many facets or a crystal. He then hops right into one of the edges nearby, his tail still waggling.

Eithne takes a moment to study the intricate image before she follows, trying to work out what exactly she's looking at - or, at least, the impression it gives of what it is. Her stance is a bit wary, even as she plops herself down into a seated position.

It takes a while for things to focus, almost as if Eithne's brain has to turn on its side to see. Like the eyes of an insect. It's a rippling swarm, a flower, an ecosystem, many things all at once, complex and beautiful. Sparhawk, the full self like a picture in front of her, so hard to see because it is so much.

The crystal resembles more of the ink storm, full with sharp edges and sparkling light...but the storm is clearing. The mind inside the crystal is focusing on something else, a pair of very blue birds, one of whom is intimately familiar and the other whose thoughts and emotions can be heard on the gem's surface.

Eithne nods, bobbing her head as things come into focus, before she rises to her feet. "Well, this will be interesting. I wonder how much will bleed through from the other members of the Greater Sparhawk?" she muses to the air, before glancing to where Dirt stepped into the image and trying to follow suit... And whistling The Song That Never Ends.

The redfur is also trying /not/ to think of a heard of Buffalo. Or a flock of Daffy Ducks. Or a mischief of Bugs Bunnies.

Like the surface of water, it ripples as she steps through, the entire /place/ vibrates at her entrance. Not subtle, and there's a snerk nearby, as the painted coyote dances across the surface without making a single ripple.

Eithne rolls her eyes, and ceases the whistle. There's a light grumble about "not having been /taught/ to be stealthy" before she focuses on being a small breeze, floating across the surface of a lake, and trying to follow Dirt once more.

Entering the mindscape at the same time as Sparhawk is reorienting hir thoughts away from the inhuman songs/sight/smell of nanite activity to the relatively normal eavesdropping on Skylar having sex...it is the best time to sneak, even with the ringing like a gong. Which works reasonably well to the midsection of the Neverending Story theme running through Spar's internal soundtrack.

Eithne follows Dirt as he swaps from swimming to flying, and then touches down on the ground below. The great corpse of the Gmork, enwrapped in vines from the last trip through this familiar echo in Sparhawk's memories. And then he's off, padding across the swamp, his goal not clear.

Eithne sniffs and pokes at the Gmork, wondering what it is exactly and taking a moment to inspect it, before she dances after her teacher once more. She's sure that Dirt's obvious goal will become apparent in time, and that his secondary (and tertiary) goals will become evident after much pondering. And then she'll get laughed at for presuming he /has/ secondary and tertiary goals whether or not the fact is true...

Sparhawk shrinking and condensing. Reclaiming the sense of having-a-body brings whispered words to Skylar's ears, "I am glad you found hir," a generally loving presence somewhere behind the action.

The swamp grows darker as the coyote reaches areas that even Sparhawk isn't aware exist, that portion of his mind he doesn't want to see. A dark cave, endlessly deep. He pauses to wait for Eithne to catch up, and without looking back. "It's calling from in here."

Skylar blinks as she stops caressing Lasair on their afterglow moment. She turns her head and then remember how the whole thing works, replying to Sparhawk. 'Kinda stumbled on hir, thought we were all dead or on vacation. Where are you?'

Eithne pads up beside her Teacher, looking into the cave with curiosity. She opens her mouth, probably to ask 'What calls?' before closing it and deciding to try and find out for herself. She closes her eyes and perks her 'ears', and opens her mind to things.

"Home," says Sparhawk succinctly. "Welcoming." Still not entirely human psychology; shi's been spending entire days watching new nanite programs flying around the city, even stranger than the new mutants (whose appearance seems to have slowed to a crawl this year).

Lasair gives a little stretch, as shi starts hearing the voices. Everything is muted and blurry though, must be the infection taking its sweet time as shi rests.

A lonely voice, agony, it calls, cries for the end, for death, for release. It's familiar and different, almost like the echo of someone she knows. Dirt continues onward into the darkness ahead of her.

Skylar returns to patting and scritching Las before replying to Spar. "Welcoming...Lasair back...? Or someone else?" She asks Sparhawk clearly confused and oblivious of any cries for death.

Eithne opens her eyes, frowning a moment, before following after Dirt into the cave. "Should I light things up, Teacher, or...?" She tries to stick close to the godling, eyes roaming the dark for what she can pick out.

Sparhawk is a desert island in bright sunlight, waves sparkling with reflections; welcoming to koi-shaped people and ignoring the stygian depths of oceans.

Dirt takes a moment to thump his muzzle against Eithne's, affectionately, the answer being affirmative, seeing how she will handle the situation, enlightening things.

Skylar is in silence, physically. Her expression, again, physically, seems about to laugh while her mind laughs loudly. 'Spar...did you...eat something you shouldn't have?' she replies through the link.

Sparhawk manifests a confused firebird avatar on the island. 'Not that I know of? Nothing for some time, actually. Are you trying to make me psychosomatically hungry?' Sparhawk grins at the last question, as ever.

The redfurred 'yote closes her eyes a moment, turning her gaze inward. A spark of her passion for discovery is drawn forth, and carefully fed with her curiosity - to find out what the source of the cries is - and compassion - for the begging, agonized thing sending the cries out... And then she tries twining the result in her fur, before she opens her eyes to see the fruit of her mental labor.

Skylar quickly answers with a 'no' to Sparhawk while saying to Lasair: "I'm talking to Spar...shi's....doing something weird...as always." To Sparhawk she replies. 'Who are the Koi people...? And where are you? Sorry for all the questions, it's just kinda...confusing.'

Like a beacon going off, a sun rising within the entire greater Sparhawk, illuminating the depths, caverns. A writhing Lasair on the ground in front of the two, wretched, not even entirely there, begging for death. The whole can hear her voice, shudderingly familiar yet strangely different.

Sparhawk is startled to see a second sun rising over the ocean. 'Uh, let me get back to you on that...' The attention of Sparhawk shifts downward, inviting the other inhabitants in hir wake, sculpting hirself without fear.

Skylar freezes as she hears the voice too. "Uh..." she says physically while saying 'Uh...' mentally. "'What...the...?'" she adds on both 'fields'.

Eithne blushes through her fur at her brightness, but pads over to the writhing Las-image. She leans in and nudges it with her cold, wet canid nose, trying wrap her compassionate fire around the agonized bit of Las and offer what comfort she can to it.

The image is quite real, and not at the same time, it reacts in fear to the wandering nose, backing away. It doesn't seem much like Las though, Las never having been fearful, or any of those things. A voice from behind says, "Shi's been dreaming of the end for some time now. It is time to do something."

Sparhawk is all like 'Sup?' when arriving in the dark cave. Not occupying the walls or the terrain, giving the noisy interlopers at least one chance to explain themselves. Dealing with the...whatever that is...can come later.

Skylar makes mental grabbyhands at Sparhawk while saying "Hang on a moment." to Las before she closes her eyes to concentrate onto the task.

Eithne isn't familiar with Las, so the fearful shying away isn't all that odd to her. She carefully noses at the image once more, before glancing up to the source of the voice. Sparhawk's appearance gets a tail-wag of greeting, the tail briefly altering to make the gesture possible. Her voice is recognizable enough, at least; "The End of what? And what kind of actions are you thinking of?" Her rump plops down as she takes a seat.

Eithne lives up to her namesake - she's a little firecracker, energetic and bright. Crimson hair is left to splay about her head, wild and untamed. Her light green eyes shine with hope and zeal, and she's constantly twitching and moving... unless she's found something to tinker with, when she's focused in and every motion is careful. Or about to explode into movement in case the device is about to do the same. You never know.

The coyote image grimaces, noticing they finally have brought the attention of the owner of this place down on them. He chides, "We really need to teach you subtlety." to his student, before the image is facing Sparhawk. His two dimensional form no easier to look upon hear than in reality. He sniffs at the creature known as Sparhawk and says, "You refuse to let anything die, don't you? Even when it's wanted."

Sparhawk sorts shape and story out of form and movement and word, eyes flicking up and down Dirt and Eithne. Shi eventually says, "Heh. Subtlety. That's why you snuck in and are being vague and unhelpful?"

Skylar stops the grabby hands and materializes herself beside Spar, alluding the action to climbing over a fence. "Hey..." She says not sure 100% about what's going on, focusing her stare onto the weird Lasair."

Not-Lasair is curled up in a ball, as far from everyone as possible, looks all the more wretched illuminated in the light. A fraction of Las that should never exist, never have come into being.

The coyote image known as dirt turns to Eithne and says, "Run!" and snags the Not-Lasair, leaping through the wall.

Eithne shrugs at Coyote, a bashful smile on her lips. "I'm fire. What did you expect?" She glances at Skylar and Sparhawk, though, and turns to look at Not-Las just in time to see Dirt's trickery. She rises to her feet and leaps after him, trying to slide into the wall as her Teacher did... and flexes her mind to shed her 'sun' of a fiery pelt behind her, dredging up some long-buried panic to hurl towards it to feed it.

Sparhawk puts an arm around the now-present Skylar and hugs warmly. And then Dirt decides to flee instead of answering! "Hey! Where do you think you're going?" Skylar gets swung up on hir back, and the fastest thing on six legs pursues. "I already had that argument! No one person agreed with me!"

Skylar's eyes bulge as Eithne and Dirt run off with weird Lasair. As she's slung around Spar she says. "What...the hell is Dirt doing?" She then tries something of her own, focusing on being 'somewhere else' in this space, not beyond the wall but wherever Dirt, Eithne and the weird Lasair are now.

Skylar first sees an image of the fleeing coyote in a strange world, almost block like and pixelated. And then another image of him running through the halls of a space ship, and then another. Fragments of him everywhere in Spar's weird mind, images of things shi loves. The coyote seems to be intentionally trying to confuse, and Eithne's nowhere in sight.

Skylar hesitates before describing what she saw to Sparhawk, once she explains the image the continues. "I...dunno how we're going to catch up with them but...this is not physical, we should be able to warp to them or...something...I dunno what they were doing to Las but...she looked weird."

Sparhawk draws to a stop in a cave corridor. "This would be much easier if Dirt rambled on like a proper trickster." Shi shakes hir fist, to the confusion of a nearby flying jellyfish. "You go back to the Las we know and remember--don't think about purple elephants."

Skylar sighs. "Fine fine...I'll go back to her. Just...keep me updated and call me if you manage to actually talk to Dirt, not that I think it's even capable of coherent speech." She then pops out of mind-existence. Opening her eyes as she's back onto the bed she's sharing with Las. "Uh...Las? You're with us?" She asks, softly shaking hir shoulder, even if her eyes are open and alert.

"Of course you're not thinking about purple elephants," Sparhawk comments to the empty air, trotting forward. "Too busy not being able to make coherent speech!" Shi aims for anyone else thinking about purple elephants, assuming the meme takes hold.

The coyote mumbles something under his breath to Eithne about "stupid humans and their purple... what?" he blinks, and looks down at the strange Not-Lasair, who's shape has taken on some elephantine features. He growls.

Eithne has immunity memes, but apparently her teacher doesn't. And Not-Las has a vulnerability, it seems. She tries to focus on Not-Las taking a more Lasair shape, canid tongue poking out of the corner of her mouth.

“Elephants," says Sparhawk politely. "I don't suppose I can help you, gentleman and lady?" This time the question is mildly annoyed.

Dirt says, "You hold them hostage. Even the thread that makes up you is tired of this. How many make do you keep trapped in here now?" he glowers at Spar. Looking back to Eithne he says, "Go collect them all, and bring them, we can talk rather than fight."

Eithne nods to Dirt, and to Spar, and then closes her eyes and opens her mind again, 'listening' for other discordant notes in the mindscape and using those to orient herself as she tries to follow her Teacher's order.

Sparhawk folds various legs and sits for dramatic effect. "You know as well as I that I didn't enjoy the last fight. So explaining what you are talking about, yes. Let us do that. What thread makes up me?"

Skylar's ears perk as Dirt speak, materializing herself back on Sparhawk's side. "Hey there!" She cheerfully says at Dirt. "Boy oh boy I sure would enjoy an explanation instead of more confusion and pointlessness!" She leans onto Spar with an arm.

Dirt looks in approval toward his student as she seems to understand, one part having appeared without her even trying. The strange coyote looks back at Sparhawk and Skylar. "The thread that keeps all this together. The part of you that you borrowed from your child. It's getting tired, and hungry. You've denied it, left it chained up, and denied. And it's free, and has someone I care about. I was going to give this shadow as trade." nudging toward Not-Lasair.

Sparhawk inclines hir head to the painted coyote. "As opposed to everyone else, who just have their dark impulses chained up with regards to the people driving in front and their annoying bosses. Why would you think I wouldn't come rescue a person--and also let you toss Lasair into alleged oblivion?"

Skylar looks at Sparhawk and then back to Dirt. "Who is tired and hungry...? And...instead of coming and talking to us you decide to kidnap..." She hesitates. "...Lasair to do what's better for you...?" She then looks at Eithne. "Do you...even know what he's doing or are you just following blindly hoping it to have some Aesop style thing in the end of it, no matter the cost?"

Eithne has vanished elsewhere in the mindscape, hunting down sources of Discord in this little bit of the mindscape and gathering them up.

"She does not follow blind, unlike you, my dear. Have you considered for a moment that your master might have secrets he does not wish to share?" He's now closer to the two, looking at Skylar, sniffing her for a moment, "You are new here, and that is not the person you call Lasair. Not anymore."

Sparhawk mutters something about 'don't like being called master' while peering at the mildly elephant-flavored Notlas. Shi pays a little attention to the room as well, finding it...curiously unfamiliar, for being inside hir head.

"He's not my master..." Skylar says as she backs from Dirt as he sniffs, not liking him getting any info about her. She then grabs one of Spar's hand in an affectionate gesture. "He's my mate...and he has answered everything I've asked about so far..." She looks again at not-Lasairphant. "What is it then? What secrets would Spar keep from me?"

"He's afraid to let anything die. Your friend wanted to leave for a very long time though stayed silent, and when it happened by accident, a part got left behind." The coyote looks directly at Skylar, "He will never let you go, he can't. He can't bring himself to let anything go."

Eithne has various parts of the hivemind following her when an overpowering scent catches her attention. She follows it, the sound of buzzing drawing attention too. An insect swarm high in the air swarming over something.

Sparhawk squeezes Skylar's hand reassuringly. "That is wrong and you ought to know it. Are there any feral shadow dragons in here?" Shi also beams a message up toward Lasair, the real one just recently reconnecting: 'I am sorry'

Skylar also squeezes Spar's hand, a clawed thumb rubbing its back. "So...Las wanted out but...never said anything and somehow it is Spar's fault? I'm sorry. I don't see how you came to such a conclusion."

Eithne ooooos at the buzzing swarm, and carefully moves forward to try and see what it's obscuring. There is a simple and effective answer to that, however, and the keen-minded 'yote applies it. She takes a deep breath, narrowing her eyes and her focus, and breathes out smoke from her 'internal furnace', trying to waft it over the buzzing horde.

Dirt suddenly sniffs again at the air. "Oh, oh no." He looks very carefully at Sparhawk, "It found her."

Sparhawk eyes Dirt dubiously. "They and him don't want to get involved?" Shi's got no idea who the two pronouns refer to, but doubts any straight question will get a straight answer. This distracts from inspecting the terrain.

Skylar shakes her head at Dirt. "Who found who?"

Shaking his head, "I need you to bring us there now. Picture my student, Eithne. Now!" he actually looks concerned.

Skylar seems really surprised at Dirt looking concerned and looks at Sparhawk, still squeezing hir hand. "Do it. He's being straight, it must be something really terrible."

The buzzing noise is now all around, Eithne's wandering closer the thick choking swarm is covering a figure, it's hard to see any aspect of it under all the crawling swarm, but two tails fork from behind.

Sparhawk grins. Well, maybe it'll work from someone else. Then shi warily tugs Skylar onto hir back again, building an image of the science-neko shi's spent approximately ten minutes with in the Pub.

Eithne continues breathing her smoke onto the swarm, trying to pick out the figure. After a moment, she tries focusing that pleased, sleepy feeling she gets when she's pet into the smoke, wondering if that will make it more effective...

The Swarm seems to part in front of Eithne, encouraging her to move closer.

Eithne creeps closer, wafting her smoke around. Y'know what they say about cats and curiosity, after all...

Skylar helps Sparhawk by sharing what she knows about Eithne, which is mostly how she and Balina get toghether.

Dirt hops onto Sparhawk as the three move directly toward the swarm. The thing is disturbingly large, growing bit by bit, and how it's gone unnoticed is... impressive.

"So. Many. Alone." Many voices speak in tandem as the swarm of insects seem to raise the body from lying down to kneeling, the tails slowly being engulfed into the masses. "Where. Who."

The swarm continues to guide Eithne toward the figure, it parting, showing a feminine figure, still covered from head to toe in crawling insects. What kind never seems to be determined, the shifting mass indeterminate. Whispers surround Eithne, "Ours, Mine, More." words all at once from many angles.

Skylar looks surprised at the swarm. "Spar...is that...some sort of representation of your secrets? Or...is that...someone? Lots of someones apparently."

Eithne makes a snap decision, not liking this situation at all. She draws forth her depths of compassion, whirls in her steely Hope, and wraps the inferno that is her soul around herself as she plunges in, trying to drive the swarm away from whomever it is in there with a high, piercing birdcall utterly unfitting of her current shape.

Sparhawk raises hir eyebrows at the swarm. "I appear to be surrounded by people with pronoun issues today! And here I was thinking he-she was the biggest problem of the modern world." Brave mockery given, shi murmurs to Skylar, "Dunno yet. I think I see someone inside though."

Skylar snickers, letting her nervousness seep through. "The biggest downfall of civilizations, the herm pronouns..." She looks at Eithne as she enters the swarm but says nothing.

Dirt bolts forward, looking very concerned. He's far too late as Eithne dives into the mass of the creature, the swarm from all over moving down to swallow. The things pour onto her just as she comes into contact with the figure, sending them flying out of the swarm.

Eithne is covered by the swarm, every orifice filled with the writhing mass of insects. Dirt growls loudly in frustration, and then leaps at Skylar to prevent her from being absorbed as well.

Sparhawk makes a general 'uhm' sound as shi brushes off Grantok. "One of the more confusing things I've ever encountered. And I left my electric flamethrower in my other pants," shi comments in the general direction of the swarm as hir eyes raise to it.

Dirt's mouth, full of Skylar's arm, prevents him from speaking. He pulls his jaws around it, but remains on top of the prone bird below. "Don't be stupid, child. I don't want you feeding the thing. Who knows what kind of power my pupil has just fed to that... thing." His teeth bared, he shouts at it. "Let her go!"

Skylar seems really scared of Dirt and now even more by the swarm. "Augh...I'm sorry...I didn't mean to do that..." She says clearly ashamed of her action. "So...how do we stop it from feeding onto Eithne's powers...?"

Sparhawk observes the swarm's reaction when hir most-recently-acquired nemesis shouts at it, not joining in until at least Grantok's lifted onto her feet. "Who knows what Eithne's powers are in the first place?"

Grantok squints finally realizing all of the others present, most notably the Painted 'yote standing above Skylar. "You! We need to- Where the hell have- Am I still dreaming or no?" Clearly the mass of things on her mind all seemed to spill out at once.

"Coyoty'ness?" Skylar theorizes at Sparhawk as she tries to back off from the swarm and Dirt. "Grantok...uh, yeah, it's a dream, are you okay?"

"Probably!" Sparhawk calls out cheerily in response to Grantok's question. "Although if we weren't in apparent-peril we could have an interesting discussion if 'really here' and 'still dreaming' are at all related to each other."

The mass around Eithne swarms, burbling up in bubbles of writhing creatures, the mass filled with winged wasps and bees. Words from all around speak, "More, Mine, Hunger." emitted at once by many. It still seems unsorted, unfocused. Dirt's hackles go up, and he turns to Grantok, "This isn't a dream, and you all are very much in danger. How in the hell did that thing get to you?" he looks carefully at Grantok. "I kept you sealed off from this for a reason."

"Duly noted." Grantok nods to Spar before turning to Dirt. "Fine, but at this point we talk about it later. And by later I mean soon." She stares at the swarm in focus, answering both the earlier question and the last at once. "I had a dream. Very vivid one out in the middle of some forest where those voices, those feelings were calling out to me. I still can feel them a bit now. Empty. Lonely. Craving something to fill the emptiness. But I believe I'm alright. Is... Is Eithne?”

Skylar retreats a bit more, getting up and sprinting back to Sparhawk and Eithne. "Wait...this is not a dream...?" She then shakes her head, stopping only to hear Grantok. "Whose feelings are those and...where are we...? Agh, never mind the why's and when's, we need to help Eithne, somehow."

"Orrrr...I could have that discussion with Dirt, either way." Sparhawk notes that the swarm shouts back when Another Coyote yells at it, filing that away for later. Shi steps to Skylar and offers her a hand again, dusting off her shoulders a little. "Can't argue with helping, but the /how/ is important."

Skylar nods and lets out a little 'thanks' at Spar before speaking again. "Yeah...I feel like in one of those old timey adventure games...maybe we need smoke against insects...? But...then again if this is not a dream..." She says as she clearly is still struggling with the logic of this place.

Grantok muses slightly to Sparhawk. "What is it with us and having to deal with masses of bugs? First spiders and ants, now this. And me without my bug spray." She edges backwards from the shambling horde of stingers, analyzing its movements and trying to figure out a plan of action.

Dirt looks at the three conspiring, but he seems quite distracted and concerned. He speaks to the swarm again, "What do you want for her? Let her go, and I'll give you what you want." And the mass echoes back, "Mine, No, Yes, Need, Hunger." useless response, but the dissonance between them obvious. They seem unfocused still, still swarming over the creature inside. Dirt sighs, and heads back to where Not-Lasair was, and grabs hir in his jaws, dragging it toward the swarm.

Sparhawk exhibits more wit, running along at the mouth while observing most everything. "Bug spray, electrified flamethrower, same difference. Would you prefer another coyote swarm?" Hir ears go up in alarm when Dirt grabs the...Lasair-shaped thing. "Mind telling me what you think you're doing with hir?"

"At least with the coyotes there were a few more obvious options." Grantok eyes Dirt inquisitively. "This another one of those interpretations that I'm prone to getting wrong or are you actually planning on throwing her to them in appeasement?"

Dirt snorts at Sparhawk, "This isn't your friend. Just an echo you won't let go. And I plan to trade them. At the very least to get the one that wishes to live, her freedom."

"Because trading people to evil-looking forces worked /so/ well the last three times." Sparhawk snorts in turn. "If that's not Lasair, what does 'echo' mean and what is that bug swarm really?"

The Swarm becomes even more visibly agitated, swarming on something to the side of Eithne, uncovering her enough to see her face, some insects still crawling about her fur.

Skylar eyes Spar and Eithne as they talk about other swarms, she doesn't get the conversation but also gets alarmed about not-Lasair. "An...echo? So, it's not Lasair? Just a representation of her?" She lifts her hands, indicating more confusion than before, the swarm breaking her trance. "Look...if this won't affect the real Lasair or anyone else, then say so instead of saying it's an echo or something like that, I don't fully grasp what you're trying to explain here but...it's clear that we won't care if you trade in something that's not alive for Eithne..."

"I didn't say it wasn't alive. It's very much alive, kept alive by your friend there. A memory, or residue of your friend once a part of you, now returned. It is Lasair, and it's not. And it wants to die." He seems too caught up to notice the change to the swarm. On his high horse, he turns directly to Sparhawk. "You know what the Swarm is."

Eithne cracks an eye open, the emerald orb filled with hurt, and tries to slowly - very slowly - crawl away from the epicenter. It's obvious she's trying not to overly disturb those insects still crawling about her form as she moves, inch by inch, towards the group.

Grantok watches the exchange between Dirt and Spar briefly, keeping her attention focused more on the swarm and the slowly emerging Eithne. Her first instinct is to keep the distance between them the same, but she fights that impulse, holding her ground. "We... may not have to worry about a rescue."

Sparhawk shakes hir head. "Nope. Enlighten me, Coyote-shaped-thing. I have no idea what is going on, much less why or who." Laser Pistol of Moderate Doom, nope. Ancient seldom-used chainsword, about as good as a single flyswatter. Being-on-fire might be of use.

The voices of the swarm echo about, "Family, Mine, More." as they seem to be caught up in whatever it is they're swarming over, nothing outright visible in the swarm yet, and then figures, one figure, then another, then a third are absorbed.

Skylar looks at Grantok, only hoping that Dirt and Spar manage to agree between themselves. "You...sure?" Her gaze goes for the figures being absorbed. "Uh...what the hell is going on?"

Eithne continues slowly clawing her way forward, pulling herself across the ground. The further out she is, the faster she moves - though still slowly, at that. There's a tight little frown on her 'yote muzzle, both eyes open now and with the same look of hurt in them.

The swarm seems finished, and finally notes the sudden absence of their main course. There's an erruption of activity as the swarm fingers spread out, searching for a meal. Dirt finally notices his pupil getting free, unsure of what to do; he tosses Not-Lasair towards the swarm, hoping to maybe give Eithne more time.

Skylar steps once towards the swarm. She looks at Dirt, at the swarm, at not-Lasair and Eithne, she feels pretty useless as she doesn't know what to do and how to deal with the situation. "...Lasair..." is the only thing coming from her beak before she goes towards Eithne, to try and pull her out and help her walk away if she needs assistance to do so.

"Right. I am /angry/." And therefore on fire, Sparhawk springing toward the swarm in a rocket's arc set to end on the far side of crawling coyote Eithne. It's not quite the five-foot-radius of the anti-Shadow darkness bubble, but the angry fire does radiate from every part.

Grantok keeps her distance, knowing full well the intense dark, depressing feelings when inside the swarm. She had just been rescued from them herself, why give the swarm back the meal that they'd just lost? She does assist Sky in helping Eithne further clear once they are sufficiently away from the mass though.

Eithne senses that the jig is up, and stealth is abandoned for an attempt to get the hell out of dodge. The redfurred 'yote's hand legs scrabble at the ground a moment before they're put under her, and she tries to leap forward with a shivery, jittery shake to try and shed anything clinging to her. This is helped by the sudden presence of Spar and his fire behind her, and the helpful hands of Skylar and Gran she stumbles into a moment later. The rather light canine presses her shivering form into whichever doesn't pull away fast enough, closing her eyes.

The swarm suddenly has many target. The biggest one being the large flame. The Swarm attempts to rain down on the giant flame, but as it strikes the surface there is a scream, many loud piercing screams from around, and the swarm washes off. Not-Lasair remains unaccosted except for a small finger of the swarm, a few insects crawling on hir frame. Dirt bares his teeth at what Sparhawk's doing, but is more concerned by Eithne. He rushes toward the others and blows at Eithne, a cloud of remaining insects flying off her form, like dust in the wind. A small growl of thanks to Skylar is passed, before he turns back to the firehawk. "That thing is you. You should see, it's what you've become and denied. It’s awake now."

Skylar nods at Grantok and begins pulling Eithne as far away as she can from the swarm, also nodding at Dirt as he says his thanks, delivering her own thanks for him blowing the bugs away from Eithne, she doesn't focus on where she's going tough, her vision focusing onto Sparhawk as shi fights against the swarm while on fire.

Sparhawk swings hir arms in wide gestures that trail flames behind them along with shattered bugs. Without looking back at Dirt shi grinds out the words, "I. Don't. Believe. You."

Grantok offers a hug of reassurance to Eithne knowingly, gently urging her and Sky further away from the swarm. "Best not to stay here. We'll be right behind." She looks once to Dirt then to the flames and the insects. "How do you mean? The feelings? The cold? The hunger?"

Skylar snaps back at Sparhawk. "Why would he lie!? This is the first time he has made sense ever since we met him!" She keeps on supporting Eithne but stops on her tracks, forfeiting the hold onto Eithne as Gran urges them she turns completely to Sparhawk. "Is that what he said you'd be hiding?" Her tone turns a bit less loud and bold. "I...don't care what you have to hide, seriously, I'll accept whatever it is that you are...just...know I'm here for you." She says hoping that this will help Spar in any way.

Eithne pulls herself to her feet, after a moment, and gives Gran a lick on the cheek - actual paws and a quadrupedal stance are horrible for hugging back - then takes a few wobbling steps to brush up against Dirt's side in thanks, and remains close to the old Coyote. "They want... family. They don't want to be alone. That's... how I got out. I used some old, fond memories of family bonding to draw them off." Her voice is a bit raw, and quieter than normal, but it's firming up a bit towards the end. "It wants to be a part of something greater... I think? To be whole?"

The swarm spreads out further, searching, voices echo, "More, Mine, Please, Alone, Sad, Lonely." The sounds even more scattered, ideas spreading as the mass moves outward, keeping its distance from the flaming bird within. The one tendril around Not-Lasair dips towards hir beak.

Sparhawk has a catchphrase: "I am very large." Indeed, whether this is inside Sparhawk's dreamscape or some kind of objective reality, Spar can become quite large indeed. More of a fair fight than Gandalf vs. Giant Smoke Monster, even if Sparhawk is waving nonsecret flames and preventing a thing from passing. "Because making sense is as likely to be a lie! Also, I appreciate it," the towering bird hollers back to Skylar.

The increasing size of the firebird seems to mirror in the swarm, the insects multiplying, the mass growing larger, tendrils begin to search out, the swarm heading right for the others.

Dirt practically backpedals, having been licking Eithne in a comforting manner. He seems unsure of himself for once.

Grantok gives a light tug on both Sky and Eithne, clearly not wanting the swarm to get any closer. It doesn't take long until she's on Dirt's heels. "The 'lady' doth protest too much it seems. Hero, you're not making things any easier!"

"A testable hypothesis," growls Sparhawk. "Too busy to take notes." Following one fiery footprint on a tendril of bugs the giant bird shrinks down, and then some more, a tiny bright spot on the dark floor.

Eithne steps back with Dirt, her ears pulling flat to her head. "... Sparhawk. I know you don't know me well. You probably don't trust me all that much at the moment." Her voice is a bit shaky with worry, as she eyes the grown swarm. "But... Just try to bring them into yourself and accept them." Then she falls silent, watching things play out, curled up on herself a little beside her mentor.

The swarm crashes down upon the tiny firebird, the mass moving in on itself and crawling like a bubble around the bird, "Mine." is the only word, said in near unison as it comes down, still held off by the fire, the tendril whisked away from Not-Lasair, a cough, and segments of the swarm crawling out of her beak.

Skylar stays silent and still, waiting for any signs from Sparhawk, she looks at not-Lasair for a moment but doesn't approach it, not sure what Dirt meant when he talked about her but sure it can't be good or easy to understand.

Flickering light like a midsummer streetlamp surrounded by way more bugs than are reasonable. Then a lack of light inside the swarm. No chatter either.

Eithne slinks forwards, trying not to draw attention from the swarm - even with that last show, and gently nudges the Not-Lasair towards the swarm before darting back, observing.

Grantok spins about at the matching chorus of voices and dousing of flames, skidding and nearly slipping as she halts. Her eyes adjust to the sudden change in luminance, watching in hopes of some sort of sign of resolution to the situation, preferably for the better.

Skylar keeps on watching the shining spot on the swarm, tail still swishing as the rest of her body stands frozen. As the little flame goes out her shoulders drop, looking at Eithne and her attempt to use not-lasair on the bugs. She suddenly sprints to not-Lasair, mustering all her strengths to lift the death-wishing shadow so she can throw it onto the swarm.

Eithne hides behind Dirt, peering around the larger, tougher coyote at the swarm's activity. "... do you think he accepted it, or was consumed by it?" The whisper is quiet, the smaller 'yote obviously shaken by the nervousness of the question.

Dirt shakes his head, "I'm not sure. But I'm sad to say, I cannot bring us out of here the same way I brought us in. It’s hir territory now." his ears are flat, his tail drooping. He glances to Grantok, "You do understand that I've been trying to keep you safe. You already suffered far too much."

Skylar watches expectantly, not backing away from the swarm anymore. "C'moooon..." She mutters under her breath.

A fistful of bugs flit around in confusion in the swirling storm that is collecting more unity in its movements. Sparhawk's voice, buzzing and myriad, sneaks out a polite whisper: "Apologies. You should leave. I should die."

"Well trouble seems damned and determined to find me regardless of your intentions." The lynx remains focused on the swarm, even if her expression does lighten a little. "Good to know that you've been safe as well, and thank you." She glances momentarily to Skylar, noting that there are more important matters at hand. "Don't think this means that you're getting away without getting an earful when this is over with." The words from the swarm cut any further thoughts short and she tenses up, hoping this wouldn't be the case.

Skylar turns to Grantok, her face slightly contorted in tension. "What...?" She says in clear confusion. Her attention then flies back to Sparhawk-swarm. "Sorry, I'm not leaving...what happened? Are you alright?"

"We can't leave, and if you die we all do." Dirt answers toward the mass.

The swarm burbles out from the tiny firebird again, burbling out.

"Guess Shadow gets to win again. Hope Elaine makes out better than I did." Some of the bugs start biting at the others, some of those being the ones who were talking.

Eithne closes her eyes a moment, and then opens them, striding forth from behind Dirt. Her steps aren't as confident and lakadaisy as normal, but they're firmer than they have been after the effects of the Swarm. She sits down mere meters from Sparhawk's radius, and /stares/ at Swarmhawk. "We should leave. But I don't think you should die, Spar. And I dare you to give me a reason you should. Would you deny yourself companions and return to what that swam was? Would dying truly serve any purpose at this point? Skylar. Lasair. Crystala. Sorien. Balina. Lovers, Family, and Friends. You have people you care about, and you need to remember that." Her inner flame is back in full swing, a paw and her body language showing her passion as she speaks. "So smarten up, buck up, and get yourself under control now that you've accepted your dark side. We all have one, and we all wrestle with them at some point or another - I've wrestled with mine, scraping by by the skin of my teeth. You /can/ win, and you /will/ win. For those who care."

"Heroes don't go giving up that easily now. So excuse me if I ignore your little complaints." The lynx tries to stand as firm as possible given the situation. "Right now, that's not the hero talking, is it? That's the other you. Sounds to me like you're letting all those emotions consume you rather than listening to what Eithne just told you. Accept them, not control them nor let them control you. Now damnit Spar, snap out of your funk and start acting like the big damn hero we know you are!"

Skylar seems outright miserable with the last comment from Swarmhawk. The words from Eithne and Grantok cheers her up, standing upright she joins in with her voice too. "You're not weak like that Spar! Come back! I don't care what you did or what you didn't do but you can't give up just because you feel like it!"

Bugs thrash around, swirls of turbulence. A tiny not-at-all-on-fire-bird lies slumped on the ground in foot-and-a-half-long form. An especially strong shudder passes through it at 'accepted your dark side', and smaller tremors at the word hero. "Lies. I lie to myself. I have failed at everything this year. All of my plans are junk. You should leave, and I should die."

Skylar approaches Sparhawk, stopping on the verge of the bugs...she seems to be considering whether or not it's safe to continue. "Even if that WAS true, which it isn't, it doesn't matter. You're more than whatever plans you do. So. Please, stop talking like you're just a failed mad scientist. You're way more than that..."

"Failure only happens when you choose not to learn a damn thing from what has happened and give up. Are you saying that you've learned absolutely nothing this past year, or that you're too busy listening to all of those negative emotions to realize what you have done and learned. Get up you fool or do I have to come over there and hoist your tail up myself?" Even with the slight hesitation in her step, Grantok's voice is firm. Following Sky's example, she approaches as well, remaining a few paces behind the gryphon.

Eithne nods as Skylar approaches the down 'taur, and rises to her feet. "We all lie to ourselves. It's part of being human. Lying like that isn't a reason to die. I don't know about your plans, and what successes or failures they had. But you're alive, so you can get better. You can set things right. You just need to get up on your six legs, there, and start /moving/! Are you a phoenix or not? Rise from your ashes!" Her own form sparks, and then kindles, fire twisting and churning around it as a sitting coyote becomes a perched phoenix. She gives a high, cheering croon and then flits forward to try and hug Spar with her arms and wings.

Dirt shouts, "You managed to create Elaine, how is that a failure! She surpasses me, in Coyote's favor, and in power." he earflats, admitting for the first time really ever, weakness.

Skylar snickers, also approaching Sparhawk and placing a paw on hir side. "See...even Dirt is joining in the peptalk, what else do you need for us to prove that you're pretty amazing as you are, but still human?"

Sparhawk is hardly occupying the taurbody at all, lying limp in Eithne's arms. The swarm is resolving into more of a hunter and prey situation, bugs stabbed through the crunchy bits and dropping to the ground. "

"Learned nothing except this: plans were clever but futile. Elaine is brilliant outside me. I cannot be trusted to govern myself."

Eithne pulls back, and eyes the swarm. She glances to Skylar, and pats the woman on the shoulder. "Right then. You, snog the life back into hir." The phoenix moves towards the self-destructive swarm, attempting to break up the hunter-prey dynamic with her wings and backhands, careful not to destroy any member of it.

Skylar nods as Eithne pulls back and goes to save the little bugs, she hugs the Sparhawk's upper normal torso and looks into hir eyes. "Again, even if all that was even remotely true, does that warrant wanting to die? I dunno which of your plans were futile but I know your cleverness cheered me and many other people, Elaine is brilliant and therefore you are in part credited for her successes and we can help you with whatever is going into your mind if you open up with us..." Tears quickly form on her eyes as she sinks her face against Spar's neck her voice sounding very very strained. "Please please please, stop wanting to die..."

The not-on-fire-bird stirs against Skylar's face...as a struggle to escape. A tiny voice peeps, "Tired of people telling me what to do! Tired of BEING HUNGRY ALL THE TIME!" Wasps and horseflies struggle to get around someone else's flame wings, one set taking more care to avoid Eithne than others. "Now I can't leave either?"

Grantok sighs slightly. "Stubborn as the big guy." She looks to Eithne's attempts to break up the in-fighting amongst the swarm then back to Sky and Spar. "The only way you're going to get what you want is to get up and kick us out. You're going to have to make us leave. So get up, you fool."

Skylar breaks off from the hug, and gently drops to her knees, addressing Sparhawk one more time. "I'm not telling you what to do, no one is! I'm just asking that you don't give up, I'll do anything for you, honest, whatever it takes to make you feel less worse about this hunger..." She wipes her eyes and looks at Grantok, a bit puzzled with her stretegy.

Eithne just remains silent, pulling her own 'You Shall Not Pass' on the swarm.

Sparhawk is made of flying insects mostly. And a limp depressedhawk. The tornado pulls upward and the primary voice buzzes out, "Okay. You should leave. I am a monster. You should kill me." Tendrils of the swarm start reaching outward again, avoiding the flaming person as best they can.

Skylar grabs the depressedhawk again, trying to prop hir up. "No!" She simply says stubbornly as she begins pulling Limpspar up while she also gets up. "I said already that we'll help you, we won't let you give up dammit!"

Dirt's ears are pressed low, he looks helpless. He charges past the group and /into the mass/ throwing everything he is at it, his flesh torn apart by the warring insects.

"Damnit Teacher! I'm not going to let you make a martyr of yourself." Eithne pouts, and then hurls herself into the swarm after Dirt, cloaking herself in the Phoenix's healing flames, grumbling about impulsive tricksters (rather good naturedly).

"You say you want one thing and then you want the other. We can't leave without your help. We kill you and we can't leave. Come on now, I know someone like you can come up with a more clever solution to this situation. Or is this too tough a riddle for you?" Grantok looks a little uneasy even if she hides it behind a bit of a grin. And then her demeanor is shattered as she notices Dirt charge into the worst of it all. "Damn it all! Dirt!"

"DIRT!" Skylar shouts as the bugs begin wounding the Coyote, seeing as Eithne goes to his rescue she refocuses onto Spar. "Listen! You're lying to yourself because you're tired and sad of...what happens to you! But you can't be like that, that's why you have us!" She shakes hir a bit. "If you want to die then you'll have to take me with you! Because I'm not going back alone!"

Sparhawk is not a swarm at war with itself anymore. It is a swarm at war with everything else instead. The voice is sickly laughter now, stingers and mandibles ripping into Dirt and then diving right into Eithne's flames. Some clouds are reaching toward the gryphon shaking the ragdoll in her arms, but most are flinging themself at the phoenix.

Grantok shouts at Sky, "Fuck that! We're all going back together!" She turns towards the mass and the flames within slowly fighting her way towards them, batting what she can away with her bare claws. "You hear me! All of us!"

Skylar nods at Grantok, looking a bit scared as the swarm begins acting up everywhere, her face goes back to limphawk. "Exactly! All of us! Now stop wallowing in self-pity, it's almost like you're Balina when something doesn't go the way you expected!" She says as her tone takes a much more offensive note.

Eithne opens her arms and wings, closing her eyes, even as the swarm tears into her flesh and flame. "I am Phoenix. I am Fire, which has driven back the darkness since time immemorial. I am Hope, of death and rebirth, or new beginnings. That all can rise from the ashes and be born anew." The mantra is uttered, and she brings her radiant corona to light, a swirling beacon of flame in the swarm. And does... nothing else, gritting her teeth against the bites and stings as she plays the distraction. There's also a quiet "... I take offense to that..." at the Balina comment, though it likely can't be heard over the droning mass.

Sparhawk falls on Skylar and begins the unpleasantness. "I do not name myself today," buzz the tormentors assaulting the fire. More of them die than get through, but then that was the plan. They're not slipping beneath or any /clever/ assault. Then--some of the bugs are self-illuminating fireflies, which make the swarm wheel around with an angry buzz to start a confused battle with itself again.

Skylar keeps holding onto Sparhawk, falling down on the floor with hir, she looks at the swarm sacrificial 'attack' on Eithne and the confusing self-lightened bugs. She looks back at the limp Sparhawk outright terrified of what's happening. "Stop. Please." Is all that she can muster.

Eithne doesn't even consider things - as soon as she sees the fireflies, she's striding towards them with the intent to bring them into her protective cloak of flame, quietly praising the context-sensitive phoenix fire.

Grantok makes strides to get beneath the firebird and check on Dirt, concerned heavily as to the damage wrought from the insect attack. She's running out of ideas and starting to reach that desperation point, seeming to chant a mantra of select four and five letter words together in one long unending and string.

"Just one," whisper the bugs under phoenix wing. The coordination of the assault is lost, ineffective numbers reaching for each prisoner of the room, the ones on Eithne still seeking the ones she protects. Grantok finds...nothing, a few bits of fur and bone lying on the floor. Notably no teeth.

Skylar looks at Grantok and the lack of Dirt, she suddenly unleashes a slap onto Limphawk's face. "You're not the real Sparhawk! You're just a mockery that doesn't stand even close to what the real Sparhawk is!" She says quite angrily as she begins to get up.

Eithne begins actually swatting the hostile insects in her personal space, moving wings to protect the fireflies. The fur and bone Grantok recovers gets a brief, worried look, but it washes away as she focuses on the matter at hand. She tries leading the illuminated part of the swarm towards the limp Spar body, hoping intuition is correct.

"NonononononoNONONONONONO!" Grantok flails and claws at the bits of fur and bone on the ground, frantically and desperately wanting this not to be true. "This... This is a joke right? Some sort of trick? I just found you again and... this?" The lynx drops to her knees in a crumpled heap as the tears come and just will not stop.

"You should die. Then you should leave," whisper the fireflies. Limphawk remains limp, but some of the glowing bugs flit over to land on it. "Skip the exploding step," they say to Skylar with her leg being gnawed on by hornets.

The swarm then crashes over each of the remaining friends, the mass growing in size and spreading out throughout the hivemind, searching out for each soul within. Even Eithne's light can't handle the swarm, it continuing to come and pushing through her fire.

Skylar looks puzzled at the fireflies. "What do you mean with that, you want us to die to get out? Agh, I can't keep up with this crazy stuff!" She yelps as she notices the hornets on her leg, quickly getting up and letting go of Sparhawk. "ENOUGH!" She screams while shaking her leg, she unfolds her wings and begins flapping them, protecting Eithne and the fireflies from as much of the swarm as she can.

With as much words of encouragement to not give up spoken earlier, Grantok is in no decent state of mind to put up much of a resistance. Her swipes and clawings are as hollow as she feels right now.

As much as Skylar can, it is not enough. With all of Sparhawk currently present engaged in the task of eating everyone inside hir, there is not a whole lot to do about it. The agony is followed by dreamless sleep. And then a heck of an alarm clock, the roar of a jet engine bonfire cookstove torch in everyone's ears! They have ears. And also bodies.

Not only are the three pushed out, one by one, but Lasair, and then many many children of Sparhawk each emerge from the burbling wellspring.

There is however, no coyote emerging, no image.

Eithne groans, and shields her eyes after she opens them. "... Ow." She shakes out her redfurred form, glancing down at it a moment before working out the kinks. "... I guess we'll see what comes of things in the days to come." And then she's attempting to resume her common, kittenish shape

Skylar groans...and begin to slowly get up. "Is...everyone okay? God...dammit I hate when things go this crazy and I don't know what to do..." She says before punching the ground with all her strenght.

Grantok groans and rolls over onto her knees, sputtering and coughing. She covers her mouth and folds over, coughing harder into her paws. Sounds like she's having trouble breathing.

"We wait, and we watch, and we find out how Sparhawk is doing as soon as we can." Eithne states, stretching and cracking her joints, tail smoothing out her dress. "That's all we can do. Wait, watch, and prepare."

Eventually Grantok coughs hard enough that something clears. Amid the saliva and blood in her paw is a tooth, one of her own.

Skylar blinks as she seems focused onto something. "See...that's a goddamn clever plan..." She gets up while rubbing her eyes, making her way towards Grantok. "Gran? You alright?" She nods towards Eithne. "Uh, I have an idea in my mind but I don't have the knowhow to execute it...I think it was something that leaked over from Spar..." She finishes looking quite sad. Her attention goes to Gran and her tooth. "Wha?"

Eithne sits down, glancing about the foreign area and then to Grantok's tooth. "... Was that the one you replaced with Dirt's?" and then a glance to Skylar, "And what idea did he pass along?"

Grantok peers at the tooth in her paw with a look of sheer shock, a shaky claw slowly checking her mouth to see if everything is still in place. "I... Err..." You'd think it was her tongue that fell out with her inability to make much of any coherent speech at the moment.

Skylar puts a hand onto Gran's back before she looks at Eithne. "Someone has lots of amnesiacs. The...idea that sprouted was something like altering the bubble to damage everyone's brain in a way that they can't feel fear for a while, effectively 'killing shadow'?" She says, her tone making it clear that this is someone she heard elsewhere, not something she came up on her own. "...Where's Dirt...? And Spar?"

Eithne flinches, and shakes her head vehemently. "No. Bad idea. Not going to happen." The cat's hands gesture emphatically and intensely. And then they stop, and she lets out a sigh. "... and I have no idea." She shuffles over to hug Grantok around the shoulders, nuzzling the other cat's cheek. "If he's still out there, we'll find him. If he... he..." A deep breath, and a dry swallow, "... if he isn't... then you're not alone in the mourning."

Skylar sighs as Eithne dismisses the idea that popped in her mind. "Dammit..." She then looks at Grantok. "He must be fine...don't think he would be taken down like that..." She says, not completely sure herself.

"All there. Why? Huh?" Finally the finer points of speech catch up with the rest of Grantok, but her mind buzzes with a multitude of questions that she finds it hard to say much else aside from, "I don't know."

Sparhawk the tank full of meat goo burbles away facelessly. Around the trio are a handful of children looking dazed--and one Eliot coyote looking even more dazed, sprawled on his back pawing at the air aimlessly.

Skylar releases Gran, leaving her on Eithne's care while she goes around checking on the children to see if they're fine.

Eithne holds Grantok for the moment, resting her head against the other woman's, and glances around at the mess of the situation.