Peek: Fresh Spawns (Patreon)

Cappy needs to be careful with his current observation targets. He also must resist the urge to try to grow blankets or socks for them out of his mycelia. He's very glad he decided to ask Zorro about it before he did it. It would apparently be very much overstepping boundaries with the delvers.

Zorro understands the delvers much better than Cappy does, enough that he finds himself often chatting with his fellow spymaster about what he sees and what it actually means. Seeing a pet for the first time was interesting, and Zorro was happy to explain the differences between a pet and a proper tame. He's still uncertain why the delvers allow cats in their territory, though he's starting to suspect it's partially because keeping them out is more difficult than invaders. And cats are much less of a threat than invaders are.

His current observation targets he first assumed were some odd variety of pet, and when he described one to Zorro, the fox nearly laughed himself into respawning. When he calmed down and explained what they were, Violet and Cappy's interests were both piqued.

He and she are both aware of the concept of babies and children. Mentor Thedeim often calls Violet a baby dungeon because of her age. Violet's spawns and nodes don't create young, but rather spawn adults. So the idea of something growing as she and her Mentor do was very fascinating for her.

She had at first tasked Cappy with infiltrating the enclaves to see their children. The ratkin have their young now, still hardly old enough to even wriggle around, and the spiderkin are supposed to soon be laying their eggs. But Teemo firmly told them that was going too far, so Cappy backed off.

The enclaves are not the only places to observe young delvers, after all. Cappy has been careful to be subtle and gentle with his infestations, balancing Violet's curiosity against what Mentor Thedeim says he shouldn't do. The delvers would be very upset if they were to learn Cappy has been listening in on everything they do.

But he can't resist keeping an eye on the young delvers, satiating Violet's curiosity. He has not yet seen them grow into the next stage yet, but he has only been observing for a few months. There are clearly several phases the young must go through, and Cappy wonders if they pupate, or otherwise form a protective casing to advance a stage.

There are the youngest, which hardly ever cease making noise. Utterly helpless and dependent on the older delvers, he would have suspected they would not like the young. But instead, they are fiercely protective, and Violet appears to share that sentiment.

Cappy suspects part of the reason she allows Onyx to run combat encounters is so she would be able to protect the young, should the need arise. As far as he's aware, Mentor Thedeim is unaware of it, and perhaps even Violet doesn't realize it herself, so he will keep his theory quiet, for now.

At some point, the young gain the ability to crawl, and later to walk. He thinks of it as them going from the initial spawn up to the third. At that point, they learn to be quiet... somewhat. It's more accurate to say they understand what noise is, and gain the ability to suppress it... though they rarely choose to exercise that ability. Interestingly, while few so young speak actual words, the older delvers still enjoy the constant sounds of the young.

Cappy doesn't dislike it, but he was under the impression that delvers generally dislike noise. He needs to observe more, clearly.

At some point, the young change again and become much taller, and seeing the wide range of heights makes it easier to understand them growing instead of returning to a spawner to advance. While Zorro has explained time and again that they don't have spawners, it's still a difficult concept for him and Violet to grasp. Which is why he watches.

And what he sees only reinforces Violet's desire to be what the delvers call a toybox. Mentor Thedeim can guide and strengthen the delvers once they are able to delve. Violet wants to see and hear the happiness of the young and the old all the same. She recognizes the fragility of the peace she enjoys, even if she has trouble imagining it breaking. Mentor Thedeim and Cappy have both seen things outside that would be dangerous, but that only sharpens Violet's curiosity.

If Mentor Thedeim can make the world outside safer, Violet wants to do what she can to help with that, and to help keep inside safe and happy, too. Actually accomplishing it may be beyond her just yet, but that's why she has Cappy to watch: so she can learn. Mentor Thediem is giving her the space to do exactly that, and she intends to use it to become the best toybox ever.

Good enough that the young can eventually delve her, and she can help guide them, like Mentor Thedeim guides her.