The kobold tribe was in something of an uproar. It had been a few days after their mass evolutions, they had decided to finally start the expansion of their tribe. The two dragonkin had immediately exempted themselves from this, though occasionally one of them would disappear from the village. One time, the high kobold saw the chief going to the tenth floor, but she certainly wasn’t brave enough to share this information with anyone else. Beyond that, though, the tribe was likely to expand well in the near future, the creator had seen fit to bless the tribe with two more females, and with the drake-kin and new warrior being strong parents, the tribe had found themselves expecting a few clutches of eggs in the near future, courtesy of the accelerated reproductive cycles within the caves. With this information, however, came unrest and cautiousness. While it wasn’t likely for them to meet any danger from invaders, they were still on edge since it was an important affair.

Imagine the shock, then, when the seven of them were resting after the influx of invaders, and their occasional dispatch to some of the floors above only to witness a large black something turn a corner in the hallway and start galloping towards them. As it approached, they were able to make out the uncanny way it moved, a jerky and uncoordinated gait that carried it far faster than it should. The greasy black fur shined in the light, and the thick mane upon its neck dripped a viscous black ooze onto the ground beneath it, leaving a trail of stained sand in its wake.

The warrior and drake kin acted fast, they knew it to be a Creation, but they knew not if it was hostile. They were well aware that the Creator was fond of them fighting amongst themselves. Standing in front of the hallway, they drew their weapons and readied themselves to meet the creature head on if it came down to that. It too, slowed down to a trot as it approached, those fiery red eyes filled with a malicious intelligence.

The tribe felt its penetrating gaze upon all of them, it was sizing them up, no, tasting them mentally. They could tell that should it have its way then no amount of force could stop it from having its way. Just as the tension on the grounds started coming to a boil, every member of the tribe, and apparently the creature too, received a message from the Creator. Though it was nothing more than a simple burst of concept to settle down, it was inviolable. None of them could stop themselves from obeying, and the tribe revered the Creator too much to desire to in the first place.

After that, the scene calmed some, though the tension between the two parties was palpable nonetheless. Another message came, this time it was an image phrased as a question. The Creator had given them a memory of a creature much like the one before them, and upon its back was a biped much like them, wielding a long harpoon. They knew not of what the place the memory took place in was, nor how to get there, but didn’t need to.

~~~~~

The kelpie, too, received the image, and it seemed the One Beneath wanted him to recreate the scene. A thought played through his mind, and a cruel smile once more formed upon his lips. He sent a signal of affirmation downwards, and the ones before him were notified. One of their numbers, a smaller one, and thinner than the rest, stepped forwards. The lidless eyes of the kelpie stared at the creature which was cautiously approaching, intense and unblinking. His tongue threatened to roll from his mouth as he planned his next move, and he lowered himself to his knees.

The being took this as a sign to proceed, and placed her hands on his back, hoping to find purchase but sliding off as it put pressure on to him. Once more it tried, able to hoist itself up onto his back. Putting one leg on either side of him, it found his fur to be even more slick than it appeared, and tried to grab onto his mane to alleviate this.

As its hands pushed into the mane, trying to grab onto the hair beneath the muck oozing off, the kelpie laughed, a hoarse, raspy, unnatural sound, and then reared up. The being on its back tried to let go out of fear, but it was too late. Her body was flung loose from his back, yet she did not fall. Her hands were adhered to his mane, after all, and he ran.

His legs jerked and moved, without rhythm or pace, carrying him and his unwilling passenger far faster than the tribe was able to pursue. She had begun screaming angrily and fearfully, a noise the kelpie relished, and this spurred him on even more. He turned a corridor, finding a deep pool, and leapt in. His body shifted to allow him to proceed just as fast, but before he could emerge on the other side and continue his abduction, the One Beneath sent some intent.

He forced himself to a stop, emerging above the water with his passenger taking a huge breath of air, sputtering and coughing. He turned around begrudgingly, and pulled himself from the pond as his rear forced itself back into shape. There, he waited for the group of beings he saw approaching.

~~~~~

The kobolds were in a rage at the moment, quickly nearing the thing which stole one of their own. They had already received intent from the Creator which told them not to kill one another, but this did little to soothe the rage they felt. They finally came before it, six voices growling, snarling, and hissing in harmony as it simply stood there, frustrated and amused in equal measure, their newest member hanging off one side. One of her arms was twisted unnaturally as she hung there, and it wouldn't come loose. She seemed equal parts in pain and enraged, and while she couldn’t struggle free, nor did she attempt biting at its neck, she seemed to be more than ready to take out this frustration upon the beast when freed.

It seemed to receive a message from the Creator, as its expression lightened, once more laughing that horrid screeching laugh as it swung its head from side to side, shaking the poor kobold as it did and angering her further.

The Creator sent word once again to the beast, which seemed to get it pondering, and then it finally, albeit reluctantly, tilted its head to the side. Its mane seemed to come alive after that, squirming and roiling as the liquid sloughed off, creating a pile of black goo on the floor whithin which the kobold had been unceremoniously deposited. Whatever it was that adhered her so thoroughly to it seemed to have worn off, and while it clung to her body and seemed to refuse being washed off, it was not hardening, or even sticking to anything beyond what normally would stick to a damp creature.

Finally realizing she was free, she growled and ran at the creature. Her dislocated shoulder had been corrected, and she wailed on the beast, clawing and beating its haunches, well away from the neck. It seemed upset by this, likely having been denied both retreat and retaliation and thus forced to take it, though it still evaded any attacks of the rest of the tribe. They merely assumed the Creator had been punishing the disobedient creature, and returned to the tribe before her to allow her to enact this punishment.

~~~~~

Aby had sent a burst of intent to both the kobold and the kelpie, informing them of their new circumstances. It had observed the interaction intently, and while it didn’t expect the kelpie to act as such, it was still interested in the memories it had taken from numerous sources, each detailing how effective it was to ride a beast of this sort. It fully intended to recreate this success, and resorted to forcing the kelpie together with the new kobold it had taken for a ride. It did know that this sort of combat required both experience and a bond, and now the new kobold was both the most experienced, and the closest in bond to the kelpie, so it made sense to the core.

After instructing the kelpie on the list of creatures he was forbidden from killing, and informing the rest of the new addition to that list, it also informed the kelpie that good behavior would be met with rewards in the form of being sent to hunt. While he wasn’t pleased with the arrangement, the idea of hunting true, sapient creatures appealed to him far more than mere pride, and he willingly allowed the kobold to vent in order to get the chance. She too received the chance to get something she desperately wanted: status. She was young, weak, and unevolved; not even carrying eggs to lay, this could be the chance to rectify her status, as much as she detested what it entailed.

And thus, she led the horse back to the tribe, angrily wailing on him the entire way, and the kelpie seemed lost in thought, following along. This time, she was even able to hold onto his mane without becoming stuck, a curious property of the liquid it constantly secreted. They soon found out another aspect, it stained both her skin and the scaled-leather armor she wore horrifically. She appeared to be speckled with green-black splotches where she was touched, and her arms were the same oily black as the kelpie, yet another thing about her new “partner” that she forced herself to endure.

The tribe appeared on edge around the kelpie, for good reason, and stayed well away from it, specifically its neck. It was still docile, restraining itself from acting out upon the tribe. He was absorbed in his thoughts for the most part, though, looking forward to being called upwards, even if he had to be ridden along the way. Aby too was looking forward to this, the core wanted to see this newest strategy in action.