#windthrow

"The jungle is more than my home."

Windthrow belongs to @son1c

Lark belongs to me!

Windthrow didn't quite turn out how I wanted. He's a bit off, but I guess that's what I get for not drawing Werehog Sonic at all before this, lol.

Anyway, introducing Lark the Hedgehog! Lark is a really interesting case. He was born in the far reaches of the Bosscage Maze, thousands of miles from Prim's group of scavengers. At a young age, Lark discovered his ability to communicate with plants and wildlife. When he listened hard enough, he discovered that each living thing contains a small section of one of the ancient songs. Lark started collecting these pieces until he he had compiled four songs. (He has thousands of incomplete little bits though.) When playing these songs on his pan flute, Lark is able to communicate with the deepest essence of nature, leaving him in somewhat of a trance-like state for a bit afterwards.

Lark wandered the Bosscage for years, helping out any distressed flora or fauna he found. He occasionally ran into other tribes of mobians or the rare humans, but he was never allowed to stay with them. They all saw his powers as cursed and unnatural. He was cast out every time.

Eventually, Lark felt the presence of the Great Green. He was drawn to it, as it had an essence unlike any he had ever known. Lark found and talked with the mega palm tree until Thorn caught him, returning from chasing off the Scavengers again. After a rocky start, Lark and Thorn became good friends. Lark told Thorn a lot about his powers. Over the following months, they became close and even started to develop feelings for each other. However, this happiness would not last forever.

When Lark discovered that Thorn was keeping the Scavengers out of the jungle, they had a fight. Lark was insistent that Thorn couldn't starve them, but she wouldn't listen. Lark ultimately decided to go help them. Thorn angrily told him not to come back. Lark tried to help the Scavengers with his powers, but like everyone else, they cast him out. Lark disappeared back into the forest to keep wandering.

Now that everything is okay between Thorn and the Scavengers, Thorn regrets banishing Lark. Will she ever see him again?

302. Katabasis - Windthrow (Black Metal, 2023)