Ancient Beginnings

[Doomkaiser]

James yelped as the slayer exploded out of the water. "What the hell?!" He saw the slayer pierce the dragons leg and pull her into the water. "Goddamit." He jumped into the water after them, pulling out his tomahawk as he swam. The slayer saw him and growled, threatning him. He ignored the growl and cut at the blade that was in the dragons leg, separating it from the slayer's hand. The slayer stabbed at him, blade going through his James' shoulder. "GAAAAAAAAAAH!" He screamed underwater. His eyes lit with anger, he sliced at the slayer's head, chopping it off. He yanked the blade out of his arm and swam toward the dragon. He grabbed her and swam to the surface, where he proceded to drag her ashore and go to remove the blade.

Edited May 1, 2012 by Doomkaiser

[Lato_Dato]

Vayli squirmed, her good foot kicking weakly at the human's hand in semi lucid struggles. She coughed and squirmed n pain, whimpering slightly as the blade stll stuck in her leg sent stabbing pain right down her side. She attempted to roll to her feet, to rush off as fast as she could, but in protest, her injured leg gave out beneath her. She panted heavily, eyes flitting about in their panic, too busy trying to breathe to even attempt getting up at this exact moment in time...

[Doomkaiser]

James watched Vayli try to get up and what he saw as running away. He sighed. He put his hand on Vayli's leg and yanked the blade out. He then ripped a piece of his sleeve and wrapped it around her leg as best he could. He sat down began tending to the gaping hole in his shoulder, which was only now beginning to hurt. "Why do I have such bad luck." He said to himself, looking up at the sky.

[Carnivorous M.]

((Part of this post takes place earlier, since I’m catching up on what my characters have been doing.))

 

“Is anyone there?”

 

Evanin waited, her voice echoing hoarsely. There was no reply, save for the dripping of water and a distant bang and whoomph.

 

Her attention was claimed by a groan from one of the three dragons lying on the floor. She darted over to the pale shape that had made the noise, nudging it frantically. “Hantomei? Hantomei, are you alright?”

 

The shape moaned again, uncurling itself into a form recognizable as a male albino. His eyes blinked once, twice, and focused on her face. “I’m f—“ he started, and broke off coughing as his lungs rejected the amber dust that had found its way inside of them.

 

Worried and uncertain what to do, Evanin smacked him on the back, doing her best to help. After a minute or so, he seemed to have gotten most of the dust out of his lungs. He wiped his mouth and hauled himself to his feet, although shakily and with her help. “I’m fine,” he finished.

 

Evanin wasn’t entirely convinced, but he seemed quite determined and so she shrugged and left him alone about it. “What about Mama and Papa? Are they okay?” She nosed her parents. Unlike Hantomei and herself, they hadn’t regained consciousness. Vhirn seemed to be sleeping peacefully; Makrida’s trembling, fast pulse, and high temperature worried her, however.

 

“We can’t stay out in the open like this,” Hantomei remarked, his instinctive caution rising to the surface as he pulled his mind back together. “Who knows what’s made its home here while we’ve been—“ His face became cold, his voice bitter. “—trapped all of this time?”

 

At the tone of his voice, she felt something inside of herself wilt and freeze.

 

She remembered the last time they had talked, so to speak, before he had completely retreated into himself. He had cursed the demons, cursed the humans, cursed the Grounds, cursed the dragons, cursed himself for having ever gotten involved and fallen in love. He had cursed her, and then he had gone to sleep.

 

That had been quite a long time ago—years, decades— and eventually she had sealed off the hurt that he had caused, slowed the bleeding to an ooze. It still hurt, however, hurt terribly, and it had added its fuel to the quietly burning fire of despair. For a few moments after he had woken, there was no bitterness and hatred in his thoughts that she could find. She had begun to hope that maybe he hadn’t really meant it and that it was just the centuries of confinement talking, but she knew that tone and the tainted emotions that came with it.

 

He tilted his head, sensing her thoughts; he seemed oddly surprised at her sadness and dread. Before he could say anything, however, more of the percussive, ground-shaking noises pierced the walls, this time accompanied by faint screams and roars filtering through behind them.

 

“We should stay here for now,” said Evanin, her eyes on the floor. “Maybe find a nook to hide in, and let Mama and Papa wake up.”

 

He let it drop for the moment, although her expression troubled him. As they clumsily maneuvered her parents across the chamber, to a smaller cave tucked away in the corner, he wondered why she would be so upset. His memories of his time in the amber were murky and unpleasant, like the kind of dream from which one wakes up crying too hard to breathe and has no idea why. He remembered bitterness and anger, that much was certain, and they’d been waiting for him when he woke up, seeping into his mind at the first opportunity. It frightened him a bit, to be honest.

 

The sinking feeling that those dreams hadn’t been just dreams gnawed at his stomach. Perhaps that was why she was so upset. He resolved to ask her about it as soon as they got settled into place; and then, suddenly, he was surrounded by the scents and warm bodies of three of his closest friends, and he was warm and comfortable, and he found himself loath to break the silence which was at once oppressive and welcoming. Never mind the noises from outside; they came from far away, and it felt as though nothing had anything to do with him outside of this little cave.

 

And so, presently, he fell asleep; and in the privacy of his dreams, with no reasoning mind to reject it, the anger continued its assault on his mind.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

It wasn’t so much a noise that woke Evanin as a smell. Even then, it wasn’t a smell, exactly, although that would be the closest familiar analogy one could find for it. Whatever it was, it was awful, and it made her skin crawl beneath her scales.

 

Blearily, she forced her eyes open. What time was it? It felt as though she had been asleep for hours and hours, although her internal clock was for the moment rendered completely ineffective and there was no daylight in the cave to set her straight. She felt the deep, slow, calm breathing of her father, her mother’s rapid, feverish pulse, her mate’s pounding heart.

 

Pounding heart? she thought. He seemed calm when he went to sleep. She stroked the side of his face; it was cold and clammy, and he breathed so very quickly. He must be having a nightmare, she thought. Better wake him up, poor guy.

 

Before she could do so, however, an echoing scream nearly made her jump out of her skin. This one wasn’t from outside; it came from close by, within the cave, and she could hear other noises beneath it, skittering and snarling and shifting, rotten flesh. The crawling in her skin redoubled, and she gathered herself to leap out of the shelter and run to help.

 

A claw caught her wing. She darted her eyes to look behind her, where she saw that Hantomei was awake and holding a claw over his lips in the universal gesture for silence.

 

”Someone’s dying in there!” she mouthed fiercely at him. “We have to do something!”

 

He shook his head. Frustrated, she tried to yank her wing away, but he held fast. She struggled, listening to the screams and the skittering grow quieter and quieter as they went farther away, until they stopped abruptly.

 

“You idiot!” she hissed, feeling sick at her stomach. “We could have done something!”

 

“We didn’t know what it was,” he shot back. “All I could tell was that it was…” He shivered. “…evil. Very evil. I think you could tell, too. It could have killed us both, and then what?”

 

“And then we’d have done the right thing instead of hiding!” she spat. “And we knew where it was before! Now we don’t have a damned clue! It could be anywhere! That’s what your goddamn caution has gotten us!”

 

His eyes were cold. “Right. And what did charging in without a care last time get us?”

 

They stared at each other for a moment, both too angry to think properly. Then, with a snarl of disgust, Evanin pried her wing loose from his grip and stalked away into the tunnels, muttering that if he wanted to stay here ‘til he rotted that would be fine, but she was going for help.

 

Her muttering faded away into darkness and near-silence, too, leaving him alone to wonder why she was so angry at—and, if he wasn’t mistaken, afraid of— him.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

In the underground storage room, Graysnoon nodded, blinked, and tried to shake the sleep from her eyes. The air was hot and muggy, and it was almost pitch-black. She had long ago put out the lamps and torches to conserve oxygen, and now the only light in the room came from the tiniest of cracks around the edges of the solid stone door that stood in her way.

 

She had been so close to freedom, earlier; she had heard Grublin shifting around outside the door, heard his voice in her head. The operation would have been so much easier with someone helping from the other side.

 

And then, without warning, there had been a horrible, deafening shriek, and then silence. No sound from outside, no voice in her head. For an instant, she had panicked; had she been completely deafened, both in her ears and her mind?

 

The soft scratching of a few small lizards here and there in the edges of the storage room, along with their tiny lizard thoughts, quickly relieved her of that fear. Her ears and her telepathy were both still functioning, thank goodness. When she turned her attention to the outside of the room, however, there was nothing. No sound, no mental voices, nothing.

 

She was, for all intents and purposes, trapped in a soundproof room. After a brief moment of clawing fear that she wouldn't be able to escape, she squared her shoulders and went back to work.

 

Now, hours later, she fought to stay awake as she constructed the escape mechanism in near-complete darkness. If she fell asleep now, she'd never wake up, she was certain of that. She had always been able to see well in the dark, but her progress was still greatly hindered.

 

Please work, she thought, wiping sweat from her face with a claw. I'd really rather not die down here.

 

She worked on in the darkness, the only sounds in her ears the shuffling and bumping of her moving things around, the only voice in her mind her own, fighting off the fear and sleepiness that threatened to overwhelm her.

 

 

 

((Sorry it's so crappy. More to follow. Yes, it gets even longer. That's what she saaiiiid!))

Edited May 1, 2012 by Carnivorous M.

[CYDA LUVA83]

((I see a Carnie! <3 ))

 

Farengar took the bottle of ale, glad to have something new in his stomach. He swigged the bottle and set it back down, leaning against the wall of the fort. When the human came crashing through the barrier, the dragon did a double take, wondering if he really saw what he just thought he saw. He came to the conclusion that when he and Varaug repaired the barrier, that the boundry lines were redrawn into a larger area. Farengar looked over at Varaug, wondering how the dragon could be so mellow... Farengar could learn a few things from his half brother. He took another swig from the bottle, currently content with just watching the human.

 

~~~~~

 

Lydia shook her head at Greilac. "I'm sorry, miss. I don't know of ANY dragon that works with metal anymore. Farengar is good at magic, but his speciatly is combat, not crafting. If you want help, you'll want to go to the humans." She looked over her shoulder nervously at Fiyara, wondering what the ice dragon's reaction to her next statement would be. "We could disguise ourselves as humans, another dragon and I. Then we would go into the library and through a certain painting. It will teleport us to a blacksmith's shop. We can get you fixed up there."

[Ælex]

((Dat Texttower))

 

'Sweet mother of pootis! That can't be right... -Varaug said while watching the human. He'd set the barrier to repel anything but a select few kinds of critters and wild animals needed for hunting purposes...

 

Humans were a special tweak in the barrier's setting, so that no more than a small pack of up to four or five can enter at a time and remain inside, and even still they underwent a rough check by the barrier's effect for concealed weaponry on every dozen or so seconds.

 

'Must be a neutral party... I think... -he tried to make out what the little human was doing in the distance- 'He's harmless, for now. -he squinted- 'Not sure if harmless, or just confused. -he finished and downed a sizeable part of his bottle.

 

==================================================

 

Lying on the edge of the deck, Ashur was involuntarily eavesdropping on the conversation below. He heard something about teleporting into a blacksmith's shop, within the ranks of the humans no less.

 

'Really, now... -he mumbled, and flew down, landing near Lydia.

'Sorry, did I just happen to overhear you're going into the human settlement? -he arched an eyebrow, glancing between the others.

Edited May 1, 2012 by Ælex

[Krissi2197]

Akula sniffed the plants and picke one up. "It dosh taste like mint." He said, the plant still in his mouth. He pulled it in to his mouth with his tongue and ate it. "Mmm..." He shivered a bit as his body became instantly wet. "Wow...I guess it keeps my body wet." He said, looking himself over, falling onto his back. "Woops, hahaha!" He said, laughing cheerfully.

Keisha smiled, lightly patting the hatchling on the head. "Alright, good. It works. That'll make me more comfortable." She glanced at the sky, glad it turned back to it's normal self again. That was fast... She thought, Must've done the deed already.

 

Keisha turned to Akula and nodded slightly. "Alright, that should last for about two hours. The clearing that all of the others are living is around five minutes from here if I fly. Wanna get on my back?" The guardian dragon laid down on the floor, unfolding her wings, and looked at Akula. "Unless you wanna ride in my tail since you're small enough."

[Carnivorous M.]

(( I swear, I measured the previous text tower and it was like three feet tall.))

 

Out in the forest, Peraia skidded to a stop, struggling to make himself breathe. Mercienth ran a few paces ahead of him before realizing that they were stopping, and nearly fell over trying to brake himself on the damp forest floor.

 

A small head with pale, dull pink scales poked over Mercienth's ears, and big blue eyes sought out Peraia. "Daddy, we can't stop," said the pink hatchling, her tone incongruously calm and reasoned considering their situation. "The spider-bones will get us. I want to talk to one of the Old Ones before I die."

 

Mercienth looked uneasy as well, although not nearly as calm as his little sister. His grayish-pink scales bristled, and his dark-gray claws flexed uneasily. "Yeah, um, Dad, why're we stopping?"

 

Peraia's eyes darted, and he didn't answer. He'd been following the strange purple dragon for hours now, and he hadn't thought that there would be any problems until the sun went down. After all, the humans were gone, weren't they?

 

But, as it had turned out, the humans were the least of their problems. At that moment of twilight when the sun is almost, almost gone, and everything becomes one shade of dark blue, he had realized that they'd been at it for a long time and that he should probably call it quits and head back to the Grounds. If he hadn't caught the stranger yet, he probably wouldn't at all.

 

Just as he had turned to announce to his children that they were going home, something had come out of the woods behind him. He hadn't seen it, only heard his children screaming over the skittering noise and felt something hit his shoulder and drag across it painfully. Then the whatever-it-was was gone, and the scent of blood filled the air, and suddenly he realized that the thing had actually cut his shoulder deeply and he was bleeding heavily.

 

And then the pain had caught up to his nerves, and he had shrieked, and blacked out.

 

It wasn't until the sun was long gone that he woke up, his son's face once again coming into dizzy, bleary focus. They had tied some leaves and vines around his shoulder to stop him bleeding out, but they needed to get moving. He stood up, took one shaky step, then another, then another, and then he realized a horrible fact.

 

They were lost.

 

Now he staggered blindly through the woods, mentally kicking himself for not getting out and learning the area better. He'd never seen a need for it, and now he had no idea where he was going. Flying was out of the question; his shoulder had been cut in just such a way that trying to move his right wing was even more agony than running. He'd never make it.

 

But, he had just realized, his children might. He turned, limping painfully, and looked hard at them. "Fly away."

 

Mercienth looked shocked and scared and confused. "D-Dad?"

 

"Take your sister and go. I'll find my way back." He winced as another lance of pain shot through his shoulder. "Get back home, and get help. They should be able to help you find me again."

 

Mercienth looked as though he might argue, but a glare from Peraia changed his mind. "I'll be back, Dad," he said uncertainly, and then took a running jump into the air. Kervadi looked sadly over her shoulder, but didn't move from Mercienth's back.

 

Peraia watched them until they were out of sight. Then he turned and limped into the woods, in the direction he thought the Grounds might be.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Not too far away, a large purple dragon, who would have been majestic if not for the ridiculous manner in which he ran, tore past a tree so quickly that the force knocked a certain squirrel out of the branches and onto his back.

 

He didn't seem to notice, however; he was mainly focused on fleeing the atrocities following him. He'd seen a strange light in the sky earlier, and something told him that if he could just reach it he'd be safe.

 

He hurried on, heedless of the creature on his back.

Edited May 2, 2012 by Carnivorous M.

[CYDA LUVA83]

Farengar shrugged and took another swig. "That reminds me. We're missing some folks... Mercienth, Peraia, and Kervadi. They left a couple days ago and haven't returned. God, I hope that they're alright. I've known them to be wanderers but this is a little ridiculous. Graysnoon is gone as well. She was exploring the ruins earlier... I think Grublin went to help her out, but we just saw that black dragon carrying him inside. Heh, the boy always was a bit on the feminine side..." He took another drink. "But no, he had some wounds on him. Slayers I guess. The flawed products of a deranged mind." Farengar got to his feet and shook, wanting to get the creaky feeling out of his muscles and joints.

 

"Peraia. Are you alright? You've been gone for quite a while." Farengar tried telepathing even though he wasn't quite used to it, sending his thoughts as far as he could.

 

~~~~~

 

Lydia spun around upon hearing someone behind her. "Ah yes. Metal-girl here needs some repairing, so I was going to ask someone to accompany me to a human blacksmith. We'd be disguised as human aristocrats wanting to get their 'pet' a little touch-up. It's the only way they wouldn't suspect us just having a giant metallic creature for ****s and giggles. For humans, their pets hunt with them and things. So it makes sense for them to get a little dinged up every now and again. Especially with the cynbernectic critters." Lydia turned back to Greilac. "No offense to you of course, you're not anywhere near as simple minded as a dog or cybernetic crocodile. Think of it as a Role Play." The white dragon mused, switching in between human and dragon form for emphasis.

"See?" She said, stretching her pale arms, getting used the feeling of having thumbs again. "Of course, we'd have to get some outfits. I have a chest full of them for occasions such as this. Silly humans can't be comfortable in their own form like us dragons. Well, Farengar being the exception here, for that matter. He always wears that ratty wool cloak." Lydia fiddled with her long, white hair, twirling it around her fingers.

"You should have seen him when he got injured a year ago and had to take off his cloak so I could sew up his injury. That silly ole magi acted like I was giving him a feel down." She laughed, turning back into her dragon form.

 

Farengar spun around and looked up, giving the human Lydia a deathly glare. "Lydia, for Gods sake, everyone can hear you! I don't think that they need a recollection of your medical adventures of last year!" With that, the magi turned back around and sat on the grass, drinking the last of his drink in one huge gulp, wishing it was just enough to get him a little bit drunk.

 

((How bout dem apples?))

[Ælex]

'That's a lot of names I've never heard before... -Varuag raised both eyebrows. He was never one to be indifferent to the ill-fare of others, even less so if they were his clanmates of sorts...

 

'This place has been crawling with some of the void's worst for a loooong time, no doubt its catacombs are filled to the brim with things we'd never want to meet in a dark alley. -he added and emptied his bottle, feeling just a little dizzy. That was some strong beer.

 

When he overheard Lydia commenting about Farengar's cloak, Varaug grimaced a bit, trying so hard not to laugh...

'Too much information. -he said through clenched jaws.

 

===================================================

 

'Heh... well, long as you're going into the human settlement, mind if I come along? There are some things I need to look into that can only be observed up-close as far as humans go. -he said, then momentarily changed shapes into his alternative, human form.

 

He examined his hands a bit, noticing nothing in particular to be different. He felt just as well as he'd remembered two hundred and something years ago in sed' shape, by that meaning just as weird. Unleashing some energy into his hands he watched with mild amusement how the electric arcs danced between his fingers.

 

Shifting back into his original form, he added- Metamorphosis isn't an issue and I've done this before... ages ago. What I'm saying is, you'd be doing me a favour, and I'll provide additional protection in case they get too nosy again.

Edited May 2, 2012 by Ælex

[Carnivorous M.]

Runrunrunrunrundon'tstoporthey'llgetyourunrunrun

 

Breathing raggedly, trying to ignore the throbbing, raw pain in his shoulder and wing, Peraia almost didn't hear the voice in his head over the survival mantra he'd been chanting to himself.

 

"Peraia. Are you alright? You've been gone for quite a while."

 

The voice was faint and garbled and twisted, and it cut in and out as if it was being partially blocked by something, but it was definitely Farengar's. Relief that they were already looking for him welled up inside him, bleeding through the abject terror of his surroundings.

 

I'm here! he returned as best he could; telepathing over long distances had never been his strong point. It looks like Mercienth and Kervadi got back; are they alright? He felt something resisting his thoughts, trying to repel him; he tried to feel his way around it with his mind, only to find that it was a near-perfect dome over a large area. Can you hear me? It looks like there's something blocking our communication. I'm doing my best, but it's hard to get through, and--

 

He cut off suddenly as something occurred to him. A large barrier of something was keeping him from telepathing properly with those on the other side. It was a dome, which meant that those he was blocked from were on the inside. Meaning the Grounds were on the inside.

 

Meaning, find the dome and he would find safety.

 

I'm headed your way, he sent. I'm not sure where that shield came from, but it's my best chance. All the same, if you could send out a search party I'd appreciate it. There are monsters out here, monsters like I've never seen before-- in fact, I haven't seen them properly yet, fast little buggers they are-- and I'm hurt.

 

So saying, he limped in the direction of the dome, a bit faster and with a great deal more hope than before.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

The purple dragon had already been long out of breath when a stray root caught his claw and sent him tumbling head over tail. For the umpteenth time, he groaned and twitched and struggled back to his feet.

 

Unlike his other tumbles, however, he didn't continue running. Instead, he stood, swaying dizzily as the world spun and skittered and whispered and hissed around him. He was aware of things moving at the corners of his vision, slowly coming closer and closer. He didn't really care anymore, though; he was tired of being afraid. He was tired of being awkward and slow and not knowing what to do with himself.

 

Besides all of that, he was just plain tired. His eyes drooped, and the world seemed altogether unfriendly and unimportant, and he found himself not caring if the chittering, whispering things killed him or not.

 

And then, suddenly, he caught a whiff that, while in a sense unfamiliar, struck a deep, terrible fear inside of him that surpassed and drowned out any fear of the creatures scurrying through the shadows.

 

There was another dragon close by. Very, very close by. In fact, it smelled almost as though it were directly on top of him. It smelled a bit strange, as though mixed with something else, but it was unmistakeable.

 

With new dread rising in his stomach, he dismissed the urge to flop to the ground or run screaming, and instead looked over his shoulder. He braced himself, and he saw...

 

...a squirrel?

 

He blinked in confusion, too tired and worn and fear-weary to do anything but stare. Why was there a squirrel on his back, and why did it smell like a dragon?

Edited May 2, 2012 by Carnivorous M.

[Ælex]

((Oh good lord you were referring to Raiden. Area reserved, editing in a post.))

 

Raiden's eyes met with this stranger's for a second, he scurried like the little critter he'd shapeshifted into up to his nose and turned around, looking him right in the eye, staring like a demented vermin. Several seconds later, he telepathed...

'Trees are not your enemy... guh-ravity is! -he telepathed, climbed down his nose and dropped to the ground, intent on fooling around a bit. After all, he'd survived the crash, and the fall, and the wanton barrage of random things wizzing by while this stranger was running, and his last tumble. Apparently Raiden's twisted fate was in the clear at that point...

 

'Why do you stare like this? Can't a critter just catch a few Z's in peace, without one of you scaly mammoths just flipping the house over? Well not a house it was a branch but that's irrelevant. -he paced around on the ground for a bit.

 

'WHAT IF I HAD SOME NUTS STORED AWAY EH?! Although that's silly too, I'm allergic to nuts, well not really I just don't like the taste! I prefer lamb! Or mutton! -he went on and on- 'Preferably salted... and, sun-dried. Yesh... -Raiden froze for a second, then went on- 'Now SEE what you made me do you made me blow my cover! -he put his little paws on his little waist and stood up on both his hind legs- 'I swear! This forest is full of, of, of... SPY CHECKERS!!! But I'm no spy... -he hung his head, backed up a bit to have room, curled up and shifted back into his dragon form.

 

'Much better. -Raiden sighed, then shivered for a second. No dragon liked being so tiny for an extended period of time, not even him.

'I was afraid I'd get to coughing up furballs by the time dawn approached! Do squirrels... do that? Never happened before, but there's this thought you know... -he shook his head.

 

'Oh... introductions. -he extended one claw- 'Raiden Stormleaf, how'bout you? -he said, keeping both ears sharply up, listening for anything that may have been attracted to all the ruckus. The woods were dangerous at night, after all.

 

((Da'eff did I just post?))

Edited May 2, 2012 by Ælex

[Carnivorous M.]

(( I can tell I'm gonna like this guy. Warning, crap post ahead.))

 

The stranger continued to stare, dumbfounded, at this talkative fellow-- dragon, reminded the terrified little voice in his head-- who had appeared seemingly from nowhere after apparently hitching a ride on his back. As a squirrel. Squirrels could be other dragons. Anything could be other dragons.

 

This particular other dragon, however, acted in a silly enough manner that his fears diminished slightly. He awkwardly extended a claw, fighting the urge to retreat. "Hhhl'nzaah-- Hhlunz--" After struggling with his own vocal equipment for a few seconds, he slowly and carefully sounded out his name. "A-lon-zo. Wh're we? Wh'z this place?"

 

The skittering had stopped, for now. In fact, so had all of the other little woodland noises, save for the trees rustling in the slight wind. It was quiet.

 

Too quiet.

 

In spite of his fear and confusion, he relished saying (well, thinking) the legendary line.

 

"Summin's chasin' me," he slurred, trying not to think about the creature's discourse on its eating habits (as well as how horribly tantalizing a slab of raw meat sounded at the moment). "Wh'red thah go?"

Edited May 3, 2012 by Carnivorous M.

[Ælex]

((I am planning on him being somewhat eccentric. ))

 

'We're in the woods. -Raiden stated the obvious- 'And it's dark! -he added- 'It's not safe, no, no... -he shook is head briskly.

 

'Creepers everywhere. They want flesh and blood! Much like we do, but we need it to have something to eat! What if they do so as well... are we creepers for deer and cattle? Maybe so, maybe so... -Raiden arched an eyebrow, then held silent for a bit.

 

'I am headed towards the light! -he said abruptly and indicated where the castle ruins are, though now, shrouded in darkness...

 

'The light is good, the light is, is safety, is, is certainty! -he rambled on... -'That place... -he was about to say something when a noise caught his ear. It'd come from their left, but it could have been anything...

 

'This area, it's a beacon of activity now! Not safe, not safe! Hiding pointless now. -the neotropical hung its head.

'The castle, are you going there too? -Raiden asked with a glimmer of hope that he would not have to brave the pitch-black forestlands on his own.

Edited May 3, 2012 by Ælex

[Doomkaiser]

Akula looked up at the sky, doubfull. "I dunno..." He looked pensive, he then shrugged and bounced into her tail. "Let's roll." He would have put sunglasses on if he could. He sniffed the air, smelling the lake's water. He looked at it and then pointed to the sky. "UP UP AND AWAY!" He yelled, his voice going deeper, making it sound a bit more awesome.

[EmotionalDragon]

(Beep beep, Lydia coming through! B!^@#, out of my way!) (Is it night? If not, I'll just set this on the previous night.)

 

Black shadows filled the night. She knew she shouldn't be out this late. But it couldn't be helped. She was going on her annual trip back to the Grounds. She never went into the grounds, but always visited. A green eye shined in the scarce light as the old, beaten Skywing hybrid dragged herself along. Wings folded along her back, feet dragging, it felt like she had been walking for years. But that's what old age did to you. Slowed you down, made you weak.

 

Celiowyn lifted her head and flared her nostrils out, drawing in the scents around her. She didn't smell any immediate dangers. So she would be okay for the timebeing. Not like she could defend herself anyways. Her claws and teeth were broken, she was missing an eye, she was thin beyond belief and her wings were in tatters. Plus she was old. Very, very old. She knew she would die soon. Of course, due to that damnable curse put on her, she would just be reborn into another body...but she really was getting sick of living.

 

Very, very sick of living. She had seen generations die. Mass genocides. Species dying out. Seen her children's children's children grow and die. Of course, she could barely remember it all. Her brain did erase most of the things after she's died and been reborn. It's just how the curse worked. Celiowyn shook herself mentally. 'No use getting caught up in your memories right now, Celi. Gotta keep moving on.' She thought to herself, huffing.

 

Celiowyn stretched her front legs and let out a yawn. Jeeze, she was tired. So very tired. But she had to keep going. She spun her neck around, and a few pops and cracks emanated from her neck. "Gods, that feels good." She murmured, before lumbering off through the forest, towards the Grounds. Soon enough, she found the new residents' "Hunting Forest", and she slipped in unnoticed, prowling through the trees. Maybe she'd actually go into the grounds now. She hadn't been there since...since God knows when.

 

Celiowyn let out a long, low yawn, and she looked about. Maybe she'd take a rest. Up in that big tree would be nice. She dug the jagged remains of her claws into the bark, hauling her old body up the trunk and high into the branches, disturbing a few birds and animals. But she didn't pay any mind to it. She was just too tired. Celiowyn found a nice horozonal Y shaped branch and made herself comfortable on it. Or, as comfortable as she could get right now.

Celiowyn closed her remaining eye and drifted off into the deep haze that was between awake and asleep. Soon enough, she succumbed to the dark clutches of sleep, unaware of what was happening several miles away...

 

(I'll make a post for my other character when I get on tomorrow/later today. Sorry if my post kinda sucks, since it's nearly 3 AM here. Plus I haven't Lit RPed for quite some time.)

Edited May 5, 2012 by EmotionalDragon

[Krissi2197]

Keisha chuckled, shaking her head as Akula climbed into her tail. "Alright... Hold on to something. I have to admit, my flying is a bit shaky... Being trapped for over two hundred years does that to your wing muscles." With a sigh, Keisha spread her wings and took off quickly, making sure her tail didn't dangle. Akula was heavier than she thought, and it took a lot of strength to keep her tail level with her body.

 

"Remember, we have two hours." She reminded him. "Then we need to get you to a body of water quickly... I'm not sure if those plants grow at the clearing... They only grow near water. Let's just hope there's a small lake or river somewhere around there, at least closer."

 

After a few minutes, the clearing came into view.

 

"There, look down there." Keisha said, pointing. "Tell me if you see any lakes or anything that you might be able to live in."

[Doomkaiser]

Akula had a wide smile as the wind blew around him. "THIS IS AWESOME." He yelled loudly. He looked down over the landscape and spotted the clearing she had pointed at. He squinted his eyes and saw a small lake, which was big enough for him. "There!" He said signaling with a flipper.

[Lato_Dato]

Fiyara did not share Varaug's restraint. Laughing uproariously at the memory, she gave a wide, trolling smile to Farangar; Chances were slim to nil of Farengar getting out there without a bruised pride, expeacially if Fiyara had anything to say in the matter. To sum it up, he was effectively boned.

"Oh, you shoulda seen him, Varaug. He woke up the entire godamn castle!" She chuckled gaily, holding her stomach in a feeble attempt to stop laughing. She just couldn't help herself! Even now, the images were flashing vividly through her mind, inspired by Lydia's one rouge comment. Images of Farengar rushing through the halls, screaming hysterically and clutching his robe as he ran from an annoyed, amused, Lydia. She shook her head with a chuckle, and then decided to damn Farengar further; she would most defiantly not be doing Varaug a service if she didn't tell him. And anyways, one of the other old residents of the castle would tell him eventually anyways. She looked to Greilac, the metallic dragon herself unmoved, yet Fiyara could see a slight grin on her stony face. Fortunately for Farengar, it was then that Greilac decided to salvage the situation, if only for his sake.

"The idea seems sound, Lydia." Greilac coughed, derailing the topic and saving Farengar's butt like a boss. Fiyara seemed slightly disenchanted by the change of topic, but let it slide. She'd had her fun for now. She listened to the construct speak with slight interest, wondering where this had come from all of a sudden.

"If it is at all possible, I would like the excursion to be as soon as it can be made." Greilac added nervously, remembering back to the void in her memories where she had completely forgotten a few hours. That, for Greilac, was not normal; she had been created to gather and store data, and she didn't much like the fact that she had actually failed in this duty for once, no matter how minor the failing actually was.

Not that she was going to tell anyone else, of course.

 

((Doom, don't give me that look. Hold still while I editivor Vayli's part of this posti.))

Edited May 6, 2012 by Lato_Dato

[Ælex]

Up to now, Varaug'd figured Farengar as someone who wished to be seen as an authority figure, so the image of what Fiyara described in his mind just lit the short fuse in him, and the magi burst out laughing so much that in his mildly drunk state he tripped over his own arm and fell to the floor, struggling to catch his breath.

 

'Holy pootis! That must have been quite the sce-eene! -he managed to force out and rolled over a few times while the laughs receded as quickly as possible, meaning not so quickly...

'I... -he wheezed out and got up, still chuckling- Sorry, bro. It's this, this bloody drink, is all. -he said to Farengar, kicked the glass bottle away from himself and shut himself up, just before Greilac started to speak.

 

"If it is at all possible, I would like the excursion to be as soon as it can be made."

'We'll stay vigilant about the humans over here. Keep in telepathic contact just in case things go wrong. -he said, then cracked his finger joints- 'There's a certain friend of ours that needs avenging anyway. -he added with grim determination.

 

Ashur simply set silent throughout the whole thing, allowing himself no more than a silent snort of amusement.

'Right... may I accompany you, then? -he asked Lydia.

Edited May 6, 2012 by Ælex

[Krissi2197]

Keisha looked below her as they flew over the clearing, a sad look in her eyes. Her mind was still processing how everyone went from living large in a beautiful castle, to in a small clearing. The humans will pay for this... She hissed in her mind, snapping out of her thoughts when Akula pointed to the small lake. "Ah," she said, beginning to land. This'll do for now, I guess... At least until he grows... Then I'm not sure what we'll do. Hopefully this lake leads to a bigger body of water so he won't be confined to one spot.

 

It took Keisha a few tries, but she finally landed. "I need to work on my flight skills..." She mumbled. "I'm really out of practice... Welp," The Guardian dragon put her tail next to the lake. "Here ya go... Go swim around for a while, maybe there are other sea dragons in there. Tell me if there's a tunnel or something that leads to another body of water," she said, "This lake isn't big enough to fit a full grown dragon. And by the looks of things, you'll be growing up pretty quick at this rate."

 

Keisha looked around, seeing some other dragons, but nobody she really knew. Sighing, she turned back to Akula. "I'm going to go look for my children and mate... Give me a roar if you need anything, okay?"

 

With that, Keisha turned around and ran deeper into the clearing. I need to find Doom... I need to know if he's okay.

[Dragonhatchling]

((*pops in for lack of better things to do*))

 

Cruzora had been wandering around for a while, lost in her mind for looking. Somewhere along the way she had lost Nixon, though she had yet to realize. She upturned a chunck of amber, hearing a protestant screech a little ways off. She saw a flicker of movement, but even with her nightsight she couldn't tell what it was. "K then... screech to you too!" She answered, attempting to copy the screech. It didn't sound as odd but she left the try, figuring whatever it was got the message.

 

Galant was laying down keeping a close, roaming eye on Copper. The copper dragon had done his best to arrange the various chunks of amber into a pile so he could search properly. A screech caused him to freeze, the maker being only a few feet away. Whatever it was, all Copper heard after was scrambling of feet and then silence. "Ga-" "They probably live here now... inhabiting what used to be encased in crystalized treesap. Not like they have anywhere else to go..." The old adult red answered, having caught the screeching thing and killed it without Copper knowing. He discarded the odd creature with a throw once the teen resumed his searching.

[Krissi2197]

"Cruzora?!"

 

Nixon was wandering aimlessly through the tunnels, scared. His eyesight was better now, and he could see a few feet in front of him, but he had lost the group a while back because he was so lost in his thoughts. "Crap... Cruzoraaaaa?" He called, hearing his voice echo throughout the caverns.

 

That's just great... Sighing, the SilverBellied looked around, contemplating on whether to just find the surface and hope they find him later, or to look for them and THEN leave. Whatever... They'll catch up later. I need to find a way out of here. I'm starving. Nixon's thoughts were accompanied by his stomach growling.

 

Before turning around, Nixon took a deep breath and roared as loud as he could, the sound being heard by everything within a few miles. If they don't hear that, well... They're going deaf.

 

After the echos faded away, Nixon turned around and broke into a run, trying to find his way back to the surface.

[CYDA LUVA83]

Farengar cracked the vertabre in his neck, his muscles coiled and ready so he could lunge at Lydia and Fiyara. But then Greilac pushed her way into the conversation and he felt himself relax like a deflated blimp. "Right. Now, since we are done talking about my shyness when it comes to bare scales... Lydia, you three go into the human world, do what you need to do. Just... for the love of gods, don't get killed or transform back into your main form while there. No walking around in your hatchday suits either." The magi looked at his beer glass and shoved it aside. No more...

 

~~~~~

 

Lydia tried to compose herself after falling into a heap of giggles. "Alrightly, Far. We'll be good little children." She turned to Greilac and Ashur. "Okie dokie now. If you two will go to the library over there," the white dragon pointed to the ruin of the castle. "I'll go gather up the clothes and be right over."

[Ælex]

'If you get attacked, by all means, shift back and roast them.

 

'I doubt there will be much hesitation, Varaug. Let's just hope we won't have to. -Ashur nodded, then looked at Lydia.

'Brilliant. I feel like punching a thug. -Ashur grinned slightly and walked off. The last time he'd been in a human city he was attacked by muggers. Electrocuting them was fun, but he still remembered that nasty deep cut he got on his arm from the encounter.

 

'Hatch day suits? -his mind lingered to those few last words Farengar'd spoken. Ashur, much like most of the other castle residents, had never worn an article of clothing when not shifted into human form as a habit. Comparing that to the human culture, it only reminded him just how vain and squishy those little strange pink things are compared to them...

 

By the time he was in the library, he'd already forgotten what he was thinking. The grey sat down near one of the tables, leaned against it and waited quietly.

Edited May 8, 2012 by Ælex