briarworthandoleander

[briarworthandoleander]

[briarworthandoleander]

"A fascinating species the Xu Wu - I can't wait to tell everyone about it!" - Leo Briarworth

[briarworthandoleander]

[Rude Mun here to say I have completed the story - but Ollie Mun hasn't so i will be waiting until we're both finished before we do any articles or the like]

[briarworthandoleander]

"Oh boy, this is gonna be a lot to cover."

-Leo Briarworth, at some point.

[briarworthandoleander]

Sorry gonna be OOC but it has been a while since you guys did any updates is everything going well? Wish you all the best.

We're alright! So far, we've both got a lot on our plates, but we're keeping tabs on MonHun Wilds and both really excited to get our grubby little hands on it when it comes out. Personally, I've been burnt out and am getting ready for ArtFight between doing other things on the side.

Thanks for the well-wishes! We're both okay!

-Mod GLiTCH

[briarworthandoleander]

Do you think Shara Isvalda and Gaismagorn often have fights?

These two are, if I'm not mistaken, the only two big monsters that live most of the time underground and although I don't think they feed on the same. Shara feeds on bioenergy and Gaismagorn uses the Qurio to absorb nutrients (not sure about this)

I forgot Kulve Taroth, she also lives underground, so I guess they had fights too.

Although maybe not because they don't live on the same continent. Apart from Kulve and Shara.

I would like to theorize that Gaismagorm is technically a Deep Sea Elder Dragon, not an Underground Elder Dragon given its dens location. It's probably best to explain how bioenergy and dragon energy work to explain the feeding methods of both Shara Ishvalda, Gaismagorm and the beginnings of Xeno Jiiva.

Bioenergy (or dragon energy) is everywhere, in the water, in the earth and in the air we breathe. It flows throughout the world. Xeno'Jiiva are born when this energy coalesces in one spot like a whirlpool. Shara Ishvalda meanwhile are drawn to the natural flow of this energy so they move with the flow of the bio energy underground and take root where it is most prevalent at the time. These two instances often occur after a large elder dragon has died.

Gaismagorm is a different beast.

Gaismagorm was, and possibly still is, an ambush predator for deep sea elder dragons. Instead of supping on bioenergy - it sends out scouts of a sort in waves that we have grown to know as:

The Qurio. A relatively simple life-form in the shape of a fish that could flutter around with bright colouration to lure prey. One could say that they are actually the closest in biology to a Xeno'Jiiva, as both are comprised of bioenergy.

The Qurio were Gaismagorm's lure for elder dragons like Ceadeus; a means of attracting these dragons to the cave of Gaismagorm so that the dreaded devil could grab them with its great arms and pull them into its lair to feast.

But over time, creatures tend to get wise to one's tricks, so it's a question of adapt or die. So the Qurio became parasitic leeches that would drain bioenergy from other elder dragons to give to Gaismagorm. They grew more complex, powered by Gaismagorm to find and hunt down prey instead of just luring it. But seas can run empty, and when they do - new sources must be acquired. So the Qurio began to fly. Thus began the plague on air and land.

...and how they found the species of Elder Dragon called Malzeno.

Unlike most other monsters, Malzeno were not drained but instead gained a symbiotic relationship with the Qurio, essentially leeching Gaismagorms' bio energy for themselves through the Qurio.

However, I am getting off topic.

You want to know if Gaismagorm and Shara Ishvalda fight and how often. I would say no.

Shara Ishvalda prefer arid areas and mountains, whereas Gaismagorm is going to be underground under entire oceans and seas. The two simply would not meet unless there was a large source of bioenergy between their individual biomes that was too irresistible for either to ignore.

-Leo Briarworth

To piggyback off of Leo's theory, it could be surmised that the Qurio started out as single-celled organisms during the time that Gaismagorm as a species dwelled in oceanic trenches, where light can't easily penetrate except in very specific forms and down to a certain depth. You see, taking a close look at the Qurio themselves, they give off a peculiar red glow. It's something that we can pick up on easily at a glance, something that monsters can see and follow above the ocean's depths... but past around 4.6 meters below the surface, red light begins to be absorbed as light waves are scattered.

In the deep ocean, there are creatures that use light to hunt, luring prey with a nice, shiny promise of food that sometimes glows to scare off smaller, less capable predators. In this same vein, light can be shown on prey that most creatures wouldn't be able to detect otherwise. It isn't too much of a stretch to assume that this same principle was followed before Gaismagorm eventually made the transition from sea to land, when the Qurio were still parasites that fed on Gaismagorm and the nutrients it processed as it, too, fed.

Eventually, in time immemorial, though... something changed. Gaismagorm as a species grew and their prey didn't, so they continued to adapt, and so did their parasites to this ever-changing biome whilst they worked their way up the food chain. Eventually, fish and other creatures that lived in the ocean just weren't enough, so the species both had to broaden their horizons or die. Fins became legs, legs became wings, gills that filtered oxygen from the water became lungs and vents to expel waste and excess, unusable energy.

It could be assumed that they were out-competed in the air, so then they adapted to food they could reach without expending so much energy. Once aquatic, then aerial, then subterranean... it's a massive leap and seemingly a step backward evolutionarily, but the structure of Gaismagorm's larger pair of arms suggests that they were once wings and simply evolved into powerful limbs, too heavy for flight but perfect for tunneling through solid earth and stone. Down in giant tunnels, they didn't need powerful hind legs for taking to the skies, so those became vestigial, Gaismagorm's eyes shrank as an adaptation to low-light conditions, and the Qurio, their parasites... developed wings from fins used to swim through water and their host's innards.

We might never know what led Gaismagorm to start creating exit points in the ground for the Qurio to find their way out and feed, but somewhere down the line, the behavior was sparked and a new pattern of hunting was born. Gaismagorm, too large to easily leave their tunnels, had to find food somehow, so they began to rely on the Qurio, which in turn began to treat their host as a hive. They began to leave its body, taking to the skies, hunting down and draining precious lifeblood from monsters up topside, then returning to Gaismagorm to feed it what they'd stolen.

From there, the Gaismagorm could (and can) process the blood into something that the Qurio can eat--a form of energy expelled by the elder dragon, a waste product, pure and filtered down into everything that it can't use but they can.

In the simplest of terms, think of the Qurio as Bnahabra or Vespoids, feeding their larvae meat so that they can create a protein-rich slurry that they can actually digest. It's the same principle; both species rely entirely on each other to survive.

-Oleander

[briarworthandoleander]

Leo has me on fieldwork again, despite everything. I'm glad to be out of the house.

We've been tracking some interesting leads and following a few species that aren't present in other regions. The great news is that we're making steady progress in helping to understand how everything fits into the ecosystems within Kamura and Elgado; there's a lot of convergent evolution between species here within the Old World and the New World, as well as some species that we thought were only endemic to the New World being native to Kamura (such as Jagras, though… it should be noted that the variants here seem to lack a definitive leader or "alpha", as it were). We've also not had too many cases to rehabilitate and release, but there are a few that we could write about because their circumstances are/were so unique.

The good news? We're also making strides in understanding how a number of elder dragons, despite the Guild's concerns, might actually be fitting in here, even if they're increasingly uncommon. There are a few… outliers… but we have a number of reports that we'll be posting in due time once we finalize them.

The bad news is that we've had some worrying reports of folks anthropomorphizing monsters in such a way that it's putting monsters themselves in danger. We've talked about it at length before, but… here in Kamura, where mythology and fairy tails seem to be running rampant, it's much more of a prevalent issue than it was in the other villages we've worked in. The worst news is that I haven't gotten better. The opposite's true, in fact. I haven't been drinking as much and Leo's had a sharp eye on me since last we updated, so I haven't been able to test further theories on drinking elder dragon blood to mitigate the effects of this… affliction? I guess you'd call it? I don't know. Whatever the case, I feel like garbage most of the time, constant aches and chills, like a cold that just won't leave. Fighting helps, keeps blood flowing, and I can ignore my problems for a while when I'm let loose on a hunt. I've even picked up dual blades again, which… I haven't used these in years. Just your standard motorized steel, nothing fancy, gets the job done.

Under Leo's tutelage, I've learned a few new tricks. Maybe soon we'll be back on bigger jobs again. I'm eager to put these new moves to the test.

-Oleander

[briarworthandoleander]

[OOC] Are you guys waiting for Sunbreak's title updates to finish before continuing? Or are you guys taking a break (I guess waiting for the title updates could also double as a break). Not rushing you guys or anything, take all the time you guys need. Just qurious.

[Rude mun here!!!] I'm afraid to say that work's been what's stopped out posting hours the most! We'll be getting back to it but we're just that busy at the moment!

[briarworthandoleander]

Hey! Talking OOC here.. you alright? You've been kinda MIA for a few months now so I just wanted to make sure nothing bad had happened since I absolutely ADORE this blog

[Rude Mun here!!!] We're alright, just incredibly busy I'm afraid. As working adults we have to put a lot of playful projects on the backburner, and neither of us have had much time for art and articles outside of work! We will return with more, and I'm happy you enjoy our stuff!

[briarworthandoleander]

A package filled with medical supplies-including a max potion or two- and an unsigned note saying "Be careful. We don't want to lose either of you."

It's appreciated, don't want to go through that again anytime soon. We're currently both working semi seperately, I'm giving primary direct care to the monsters in our sanctuary while Oleander takes care of their nests, enclosures and food.

We're...managing. Of course there's a lot to be said and done, but right now our main concern is the creatures currently in our care being either set for release or transferal and closing down for a little while until we get this mess sorted. It....hopefully won't take long.

-Leo Briarworth

[briarworthandoleander]

I was so angry today.

I don't even remember what about. I just recall a kind of buzzing in the back of my mind, like clawing behind my eye. It hurt.

Maybe that was why.

I don't remember... The past couple of days weeks? have been a blur. I haven't been drinking, not ale, not blood. But I've been hungry.

Leo's been keeping an eye on me.

I'm so sorry.

I bit him. I bit him badly. I bit him and drug my claws through his back. I just felt so hungry and cold and alone.

I needed him to be close to me. I needed the comfort. The warmth. I needed him to talk to me and tell me that everything was going to be okay. I don't know how long we stayed like that before I really woke up. Everything felt so surreal and yet...

Leo's hurting pretty badly. I had to clean and stitch him up where my nails claws caught him the worst.

He'll be okay. We'll figure this out.

But I need to find a way to stop this from happening again.

-Oleander

[briarworthandoleander]

Well? What ARE you?!

Tired.

-Leo Briarworth

[briarworthandoleander]

I must say I respect your devotion to Oleander . Once you know someone, and you see them as a friend as close as you two are, caring for each other comes naturally.

I just want you to make sire you don't end up hurt yourself. You can't be there for your wards and friends if you've pushed yourself too far

.

WHAT ARE WE?! -Leo Briarworth

[briarworthandoleander]

From your experiences, who would prevail in a standoff between an Amatsu and an Allmother?

Allmother hands down.

An Allmother has cannibalized its partner Ibushi in order to gain power and defend its brood. Now, you know my stance on mother monsters - they're worse than any other type of monster because they have everything to lose and will not give up.

-Leo Briarworth

[briarworthandoleander]

Have the two of you fought an Ibushi/Narwa before?

Unfortunately, yes.

Oleander and I came into contact with Allmother Narwa - a narwa that had successfully devoured her mate in an act of sexual cannibalism in an attempt to protect herself and her offspring from coming to harm.

I know many would condemn a hunter for attacking a brooding monster, but one hardly has a choice when the resulting offspring have been evaluated as an ecological disaster should they be allowed to propagate on such a large scale. It was not a decision made easily, and though I may find myself at odds with the conclusion - I still have a job to do.

That said, my job would have been impossible without a certain monster showing up and getting me out of a rough spot when the Allmother lifted ancient dragonators out of the ground and spun them like an extension of its body. (I had no idea they had magnetism on such a large scale so that was bloody frightening to find out firsthand)

Regardless.

Yes, we have fought them. It's not a pleasant task and it's not one I take lightly, while it does put my heart at ease knowing we did not doom an entire species to extinction with the battle at the Coral Palace - I'm unsure I'm comfortable with their numbers as to hunt them on a regular basis. Luckily this is something the Guild appears to have considered, so I'm rarely asked to.

-Leo Briarworth

[briarworthandoleander]

I’m a citizen of kamura village and I want to warn you that some people are planning to harass or harm you guys. They say that oleander is an abomination and must be killed before he kills them all.

I’d like to see them try.

-Oleander

[briarworthandoleander]

How's progress with the baby serpents?

Well after I got the initial planning and budget authorized by the Guild we started a very large project that took a fair while to complete. With schematics provided by the Third Fleet we had a much easier time of it, especially with help from folks in Harth. By providing ample evidence that we have no real insight into the elder dragons Ibushi and Narwa any and all things should be documented and preserved, especially their offspring. Thankfully the Guild agreed.

So - this is it. This is what we have been up to for months, the management of building an airship capable of supporting 12 juvinille wind serpents. Of course it's not capable of carrying them all at once, nor can it act as a proper surrogate - but the altitude is optimal for their development and still accessible from the ground if need be by wind drake.

It's by no means a flying fortress capable of being used to fight off a threat, but a flying research centre in the shape of an Narwa and Ibushi in the formation the Guild believes would make sense for the two to carry and protect their young. It seems to work, the juvinille's have taken to it well and when not floating around, rest upon the decking so they can be monitored without too much issue. They are however still rather grabby with smaller folks.

I have been nervously overlooking this project ontop of everything else, so please forgive me for things being slow these last couple months.

-Leo Briarworth