Xipetotec

The air is heavy and damp. Small openings dot the fleshy ceiling letting in a weak light. Half finished projects lay strewn around the edges of the cave. The walls are hung with expertly crafted skins. The light seems stronger towards the center where a dark ridgeback sits contemplating.

A howl of laughter shatters through the air. A devilish grin splits Xipetotecs face. A massive femur rests before him. It is bone-white, yellow on the edges, and stripped of all flesh. He lifts it, testing its weight, checking the length, and measuring it against his horn.

"Did you hear about Ice?" he asks to no one, gouging his claws into the bone.

"I heard they have developed a way to freeze life in its tracks." His eyes develop a far off look, as if viewing a mental image rather then reality.

"They take...time. Generations. They develop beauty. Then they take the beauty and encapsulate it in ice!"

He focuses again on the bone before him, now carving delicate filigree into the material. Animals appear dancing in the curves as dragons spirals around its length. A story unfolds, remembered in its design.

"I...wish I could see them for myself. It is a marvelous thought. Can you imagine? Forever frozen. Forever to be viewed."

He places the bone gently on the ground and regards it with a level of adoration usually left for things such as mates and whelps.