• The Plagued Earth •

[Lilithachaos]

Aysu was slightly disappointed that the Lurker did not allow the contact, but Kurai took her attention once more as a squeak emitted from the newborn. The weak touch at his throat and then his passing out caused a serge of panic, nudging his head with her own with little hope that she would really get him to respond. Her mind working in overtime as she tried to figure out what was wrong and how to help. 'He ate fish and then fell in the water. It was the fish? What about the fish?! Fins? No, no...scales...no! Bones!' Panic was obliviously not helping her thinking but she got there, but she had no guarantee that her guess was the right one.

 

The only thing she could come up with to help the assumed fish bone out was to roughly hit Kurai's back with her fin. It was not like she could pick the newborn up and do anything else. The force of the hit might jar the thing lose so he could breath and cough it out, even with him passed out as he was. If it did not work then she was not sure what she could do. Call out to the other older hatchlings? They had not noticed what was going on and it was not like they were being all 'hush hush' over here. At least to Aysu this all seemed loud, both in her mind and around her.

 

((Tala, I promise I am not ignoring Rita. I feel bad for not dragging her up to the surface.))

 

Medea let out an annoyed huff as she shook her left hind-leg, flight being thrown as the movement turned more violent as the sticky residue was starting to both itch and burn. Whatever the glob creature wanted had not been a friendly thing if the sensation she was feeling now was to go by. Stabilizing her flight was harder to do as this meant keeping the leg still, but it was better to do this than crashing into the trees below her.

 

At first she had fancied flying around to think or find someone to fight, giving test to Rakushun's words. Yet it would have to wait as Medea flew straight in the direction where she knew there was a source of water. She would have to find and tell Aerix of her little talk with Rakushun, but her first priority was making sure that this residue was not doing some odd irreparable damage. It did come from Rakushun so who knows what it could be doing to her leg. 'First a itching and burning, then a pain like someone chewing on it as the residue eats it off,' she darkly humored herself. She highly doubted that would happen, but it would be better to try to wash the stuff off regardless.

[Lilac_Lily]

Kurai was wandering in a thick, foggy sea of blackness. He couldn't find his eyes to open them. He couldn't find his mouth to speak. He wandered aimlessly in his sub-consciousness. Anger, frustration and defeat once again welled up inside him. This is it... I'm about to die. What will become of me then? Kurai mentally sighed as he let sorrow seep into his mind.

 

Suddenly, he felt a hard smack where his back should be, and something changed, both physically and emotionally. He couldn't die. Aysu and the red would be sad, too sad. He had to live. The hit to his back knocked whatever was in his throat towards his mouth. It was almost out, but not quite. Kurai's determination and joy that the thing was almost out was quickly overridden when he realized, now he couldn't breathe at all. The blackness got thicker. where his mouth joined to his throat burned harder, and his chest felt like it was about to explode with flames.

Edited January 13, 2014 by Lilac_Lily

[Coryn02]

Demetrio followed Astra out of the cave. This was an exciting experience! They were going to go and get food all by themselves! He still didn't quite understand what food was, but he was sure he'd figured it out when they got there. After all, Astra made it sound like everything needed food, so he would too.

 

He could not help but shoot another glance at the strange pale hatchling as they walked out. It was normal that it would be different, but something about its appearance was... Unsettling.

 

More unsettling was that another dragon was about to hurt his friend over food in the past. Why? Why should anyone have a reason to be mean to someone else? There was nothing right about that. It made no sense to Demetrio.

 

Astra said we can get food from animals or plants. I think animals move, but I don't know... I have no idea what a plant is.

 

"Where are we going to get the food?" Demetrio asked. While he was curious about the world, he was not entirely comfortable leaving the cave so soon. Then again, he didn't want to let his friend down...

[KoalaNoob]

Azre tilted her head in confusion. Why isn't Not-Scary Hatchling replying? Is he mad at me? Does he want to eat me? What does he want? Maybe he IS scary and is just pretending to be not scary! When Mers made a low growling sound, Azre was positively shivering with fear. Trying to imitate him, she pushed her voice as low as it would go, but to no avail. Her growl was more like a rough purr, nowhere close to the lowness that the Cavern Lurker had produced. Trying again, she managed to make more of a rumble, but the sound scraped her throat, forcing her to cough. Instead of continuing the attempted growls, she made higher, more natural noises. Now purring and barking complete and utter nonsense, she felt less afraid. She was just like the other hatchling and if you were the same, you were safe. Being safe and surviving was all that mattered.

 

Suddenly, Azre heard a loud, slapping sound from behind her. It had come from the big hatchling, the one with fins. Turning away from Mers, she tried to figure out what was going on, but she could only see that Kurai was in pain and Big-Fin Hatchling was scared. Not wanting to waddle over and then ask questions, Azre made awkward jumping motions, while doing her best to talk at the same time. There was no need for clarity, her friend was sick and and Not-Scary Hatchling was next to useless in terms of explaining. "What. Happen. Kuwai? Why. Kuwai. Hert?" Azre's speech was a mess. There were countless breaks between, and even through words and the pronunciation was terrible. This, with fact that she had been making loud stepping sounds while speaking, made her words nearly indecipherable.

[Lilithachaos]

Aysu watched closely after the first attempt of loosening the assumed bone lodged in Kurai's throat, frame shivering with barely contained urge to continue the motion of hitting the newborn's back. Her need of not causing any more damage or somehow lodging the bone worse was the only reason she did not keep hitting, but once she seen that the newborn could not gain any air any longer she would continue. The force should knock the thing out she hoped since it seemed to move it up, but she hoped she could do it fast enough.

 

Only passively did she notice another newborn come over, a red one, and speak to her. However, she was a little busy to answer the questions directed towards her at the moment. A somewhat soothing, if a little broken apart by panted breaths, coo was somewhat directed to the other newborn.

[Bacon_Strips]

The faint beams of daylight escaping through the gaps of thick roots reminded Skylene that the two had not reached the outside all day. Her stomach's repeated pleas for sustenance indicated her diminishing energy, mind deviating from the track of questioning, near selfish sleuthing, to the route of desiring nourishment.

 

She briefly struggled with staying on course before Kalana's reply won over all attention. Her strange and seemingly panicked behavior had not gone far towards convincing the Blusang that everything was fine. She was unsure why the Dark Green's name was eliciting such a reaction from her, as if the subject became unmentionable overnight. This new sense of unspoken forbiddance only encouraged her on. "Is she alright? C'mon Kalana, I'm only trying to help you here. You helped me, it's only right that I return favor. Just say it. I'm the only one who will hear it."

Edited January 16, 2014 by Bacon_Strips

[Fiirewolvar]

'Where are we going to get food?' Astra pointed towards the cave entrance. 'Well, out there of course!' She cheerfully hopped along, pausing to let the hatchling catch up, then leaping forward and almost tripping over. She liked being outside. It was better than being in the dark cave, at least. She looked back at the younger dragon and smiled encouragingly, then strided forward. She'd gone outside on her first day. It shouldn't be too hard for this dragon to as well, surely?

She hoped he was OK with killing animals. He seemed a bit nervous but he'd probably get over it. Particularly after he went outside and saw what it was like. She just hoped they'd be able to hunt something, as she was very hungry and none of the other dragons seemed to be much help with solving that problem.

((OOC: Sorry no picture - I'm on my tablet at the moment))

[Taleena Fuka]

Michiru had already started munching on the leaves in the bush "Mmm...Mmm! These are good! I guess these are edible right?" Michiru looked around as her arms picked more leaves off. Deeper in the forest although very faint, she could see some red dots in the bush and wondered what it was, but it at least gave her an idea. "Hey Clem, why don't I look around for some more leaves that Lineheart asked us to get while you get berries? If we bring her double the amount of food... Nomnomnom... Maybe she'll be double as happy! And if we get really really good at collecting food-" She gasped happily at the thought of not only giving themselves a goal, but maybe even getting Clem excited, "You could show how awesome you are to your Mommy when she comes back!"

 

((I wasn't expecting myself to post this, but I actually kinda like the idea behind it. Once I find out what happens to Medea and her wound I'll post the blob disappearing.))

As the grey dragon attempted to leave I reached out to her, begging not to leave. Don't leave me! Don't leave me all alone! I don't want to be alone! It's been so painful, so very painful! Loneliness is so crushing! I'm sorry, I'm sorry! Not alone again! Though as much as I willed those words to be spoken, nothing was said, nothing was really thought for it was only a blob, only a tiny fragment of my true feelings in an unrestrained and pure state. For although not even I can not comprehend or allow myself to, my magic knows me well and it can never lie no matter what I do to take control of my feelings. That, is the secret that allows magic to become so powerful.

In desperation I "clung" to the first thing I could- her leg. I couldn't allow myself and wouldn't allow myself to become alone again! But alas the many, many trees loosened my "grip" til I could no longer "hang on" and was stuck onto a tree. I gazed up hopelessly as the dragon flew away. No! Don't leave me here! Not alone! COME BAAAACK! I "sobbed" as much as I could, leave sticky residue all over the branches…

 

"Huh? Wuh? Feaaatthheerrr…" The whiptail yawned again a relieved her of his nuzzling. Still only half awake he moaned, "Whaatt, You don't like mah nuzzling-ness-ness?" He gave a stupid, but very happy smile. What Feather didn't know was that he was also half dreaming of a certain female dragon...

 

((I know you aren't ignoring Rita Chaos, but its too good of an opportunity to not put a thorn into Rita's heart))

"Hrrmm… What's going on up there?" She wriggled and swirled around the surface of the water impatiently. "I want to know… What's going on. Why am I like this? What's this hurt in my belly? Its noisy!" What's taking that blue dragon so long?"[/b] She stopped when she realized she was starting to swim faster and faster but it was too late. "It… hurts… I can't breathe well! It doesn't hurt as much as before though! As if I'm going to let it beat me this time around!" Rita willed herself to not surface and to not "cough." She "breathed" slowly in and then slowly out. "It… Appears to be working. Still hurts though! I want someone to explain what's going on here!" She lowered her eyes then gazed above at the blue dragon then whispered uneasily to herself. "But the only one who can won't do so! Hmph…"

Edited January 17, 2014 by Taleena Fuka

[HomeForFlowers]

The thought of her mother make Clem squeamish again. Yes, she did give a little bounce at the thought of her mother praising her, but the fact that her mother wasn't around made her worried.

"Yeah," Clem said halfheartedly, but with emotion still sinking into her voice. "Maybe she will be happy!"

Clem couldn't help but feel an ache in her chest at the thought of her mother. Why did she leave? Why hadn't she taken Clem with her? Was she mad at Clem? The Valentine nearly shivered at the thought. Dread sunk into her mind and she shook her paw absentmindedly.

No, don't think about her. Don't speak about her and don't think about her. It'll only hurt more.

"Are you sure we should be getting these berries?" Clem asked as her eyes locked on a bush of scarlet berries. "They look pretty...." Clem clicked her tongue as she searched for the right word.

"Venomous..." Yes, that was the right word. For some odd reason, the berries reminded Clem of the mean green hatchling. The green hatchling had that red color on her, a color similar to that of these berries.

Is that suppose to mean something, or am I just over thinking things?

[KoalaNoob]

Why didn't Big-Fin Hatchling reply? Did I do something wrong? Maybe she's just too focused on Kurai... Azre tried again, this time speaking louder to catch Aysu's attention. "What happen Kuwai? Kuwai why hurt? Pease tell?" Good. I think that was clear enough. But maybe she wasn't responding because she doesn't like me... Or maybe she hates me! No, she doesn't hate you. She's busy with Kurai, that's all. Azre struggled to remain confident, though any self-esteem she had gained was quickly fading away.

 

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"Alright... I guess I will." Why did I just do that?! Now I've REALLY locked myself into telling her! Kalana was raging at herself, for her own stupidity and for her own big mouth. But you trust Skylene, don't you? She's vain, but has a good heart. Her mind was now splitting into two sides, causing an argument against each other. Yes, but- but- but I can't tell anyone! I don't want to tell anyone! But there's not really any reason to not telling either... Fine! I'll tell! Shaking herself as best as she could in the narrow tunnels, she rid her mind of any misgivings about Skylene and started to explain.

 

"Remember the recent bear attack? In the middle of that, Rien had one of her fits. She wasn't close to the bear, thank goodness, but she's a much stronger fighter than me and I couldn't keep her down. Favian found us, and he had the idea of tying her vines to trees to restrain her. It worked. Too well. Rien got hurt, and I couldn't stand seeing her in pain. I pretended to be happy for a while, but later, when Rien wasn't there, I ran away and found you. I-I just can't stand seeing Rien sad or in pain. I don't know why.

 

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"Hibiki, you silly oaf, wake up! It's morning! Or maybe it's more than morning. I can't tell time very well. But just wake up! You're squashing my tail!" Feather, who had mostly escaped from the monster that was Sleeping Hibiki, hadn't extracted her tail yet. Actually, she had tried to, but failed. It wasn't really that painful, since her tail wasn't very sensitive, but it would be nice to have her tail back under her own control. "Your nuzzling-ness? Is nuzzling-ness even a word? I like your nuzzling-ness very much, Hibiki, but please, wake up and let me have my tail back!" Feather's talking was accompanied with a lot of giggling. Half-asleep Hibiki was was hillarious.

 

[Lilac_Lily]

((OOC: AAAAAAAUGH! Wrote TWO WHOLE PARAGRAPHS, then accidentally CLOSED THE PAGE!! >.<))

Kurai felt the smack to his back. His body shuddered, but Kurai didn't care about that. The fog around his mind was lifting! The burning pain was dulling!

Through the pain, he could feel something roll off his tongue. He could hear it hit the floor. He heard a voice say, "Kuwai why hurt? Pease tell?"

But that was unimportant. He could breathe. He felt the blessed relief that poured from his throat and chest to all over his body. He coughed once or twice, but he didn't care. He'd survived.

 

Forcing his eyes to flutter open, the first thing he noticed was the light. narrowing his eyes, he looked around a bit. Aysu, the Purple and the Red were there. Opening his mouth to speak, he croaked, "What... Happen...?" And why does my voice sound like that? he wondered. "Why... Hurt...?"

[KoalaNoob]

Azre nearly jumped in excitement when she heard Kurai talk. Kurai was nice, if she hadn't know his name, he would be "Nice-Black Hatchling". Forgetting what she had said, the Sunstone ran around Aysu and in front of Kurai. "Kuwai! Kuwai! Kuwai okay! Yay! Why you hurt? What happen?" Unknowingly, Azre began to imitate Kurai, though what she was saying made more sense. In her joy, she even attempted to answer Kurai's questions. "Me no know, me see Kuwai ground hurt. Big-blue Hatchling help Kuwai." Turning around, Azre pointed to Aysu.

 

((Short post is short ))

[Lilithachaos]

Aysu only stopped her motions as soon the obtrusion that had been blocking Kurai from breathing fell from his jaws. Even then she froze for a few moments, fin lifted as if she was readying to do something if he was not breathing on his own still. Yet her worries were unfounded as the Black newborn spoke up. Her fin would slap at the ground, body shaking slightly still from the adrenaline rush and the sheer panic the whole situation caused. It was over now though and he is alright! A happy coo emitted as Aysu let herself nuzzle Kurai before examining him for any injuries that she could see.

 

However, it was cut somewhat short when the 'outside' world started to filter in now that everything was calming down. The Sunstone newborn only now really being registered in her mind and not just passively noted in her panic and then forgotten. "Oh, I am sorry! Kurai is alright now, he was just having trouble breathing because he ate to fast. It's alright now, but I think smaller fish would be better," she said to the Sunstone, but also towards Kurai as well.

 

Already in her mind she was thinking that the larger fish had not been the smartest thing, defiantly because the bone in the middle of the fish was hard to break and eat. Best remedy for this would be smaller fish, thus smaller bones that would be both harder to choke on and easier to break. Yet this brought to mind the other hatchling she forgot in her panic, the Seawyrm. Aysu looked over to the Birthing-Pool as if the water newborn would be there, but alas the other was not there and perhaps never came up in all the commotion. Well, she had to go get smaller fish now so it would be a good time as any to maybe see if the other water hatchling was alright.

 

"I will be back, I have to check on another hatchling and then get more fish. Smaller ones," she said to the newborns around her before pushing towards the Birthing-Pool once more. Admittedly she felt bad leaving Kurai already, but she was coming right back hopefully. Looking around once in and under the water for the Seawyrm was little trouble since it seemed the newborn was not too far from where she dove down. "Are you alright? Why'd you not come up to the top?" This was called out as she swam over to the Seawyrm.

 

((Stopping there with Aysu before her post turns into a real monster all on its own. The bad thing is I could have added more, but yeah, I still have to do Medea.))

 

Medea kept her leg as still as possible while flying, ignoring the odd and very slightly painful sensation with a steadfast determination. She was going to get to the river and she was not going to crash anywhere because of that blob like creature's affects. Paws clinched tightly and releasing, to only be repeat the process was helping the whole thing she found when added to the focus she gave to her flying.

 

It was only when Medea reached her destination that she allowed herself to think about how the itching was turning painful in the need to be quelled. The slight burning was not helping that effect. Her dark humor of the whole situation had changed from it eating her leg off to making her want to chew the forsaken thing off herself. Again it was an unlikely scenario, but it was much more plausible if the itching got much worse. 'Rakushun must have some odd humor to do this or odd fighting tactics. Then again, it is impressive still if the creatures goal was to drive me away while he was venerable.' She mused almost to herself as she walked into the water, only keeping her head above the waterline so she could breathe.

[HomeForFlowers]

The rabbit hadn't noticed him yet. The lean beige rodent was too busy sniffing the ground and rubbing it's tiny little limbs against its face to get rid of an muck that had decided to stain its narrow face. Truth be told, it was always baffling to Lucifer as to how none of the prey ever seemed to notice him. Sure, when he first began hunting, his conspicuous flush hide gave him away almost immediately, or, so he thought. It took Lucifer a week to realize it was not the color of his body that gave him away, it was where he was hiding. If his tail protruded upward and out of the tall grass he was hiding in, the prey would run. If he was out in the open or just lurking in the shadows, the prey would run. If he was just a little bit out of position, the prey would run. After that week, Lucifer tried to position himself in a way in which the prey couldn't see him. Lo and behold, the prey never spotted him. Sure there were moments when prey was keen and wary of the suspecting predator and sure there were times when he would mess up and the prey would get away. But nine out of ten, they would never see him coming. In the end of the day, his prowess and intelligence proved greater than that of the color of his pelt. Hid pink hue didn't help when hunting, but through trial and error, did he realize how to hunt despite his hide's color and what it's real use was.

 

Lucifer froze, paralyzed, as the rabbit lifted itself on its hind legs. A wet pink nose motioned up and down as the rabbit's eyes gazed around cautiously. Lucifer's entire body went still. His feet stuck to the ground, his tail began stiff, his breathing began soft and fast, his hearted beat madly, and his eyes were trained on the light colored fur of the rabbit. His claws itched to sink into the rabbit's flesh, but he knew better than to try and capture the rabbit now. The rodent kept still for several more minutes. Finally, it plopped itself back down onto the ground, which forced Lucifer to stop himself from breathing a sigh of relief. The rabbit began hopping once more, it's furry legs scraping against the earth. It turned left, recoiled, hopped right, made a left, turned back once more, and began lope to the west. Impatience was stirring up in Lucifer. This rabbit wasn't close enough to him yet and it was taking it forever for it to do so. Lucifer began flexing his claws, letting the muscle ripple along his paw.

Come along now, my patience is retired. I can't sit here 'till afternoon.

 

Just then, one of the most strangest of things happened. An acorn, from one of the branches akin to one of the gargantuan trees around him, dropped down from above and landed only several feet away from Lucifer. The rabbit was attentive. Almost instantly did its eyes dart to the acorn. For a moment, Lucifer wondered why it didn't run. Then, it dawned upon him.

Ah, yes, the scrawny thing must be use to acorns falling from trees. After all, it must live in these woods.

Yet another coincidence occurred after this. The rabbit, seemingly, either became intrigued by the acorn or thought there was something tasty over where Lucifer was, for it began making its way towards him, if not, slowly. This got Lucifer's excitement up heavily. His entire body wanted to move, but he had to keep still as he could not scare the rabbit away.

You don't have to do this.

Lucifer's nearly cringed at the voice. There it was again. That voice he often mistook for someone he knew was speaking to him again. It was only in times like this did Lucifer think the voice was wrong and should just disperse. If he wanted to hunt a rabbit, then by god's green earth, he would hunt this rabbit!

You're wasting your time. Stop trying to take a life that could fed another.

Quiet! If I want to hunt, then I'll hunt! What right have you to tell me otherwise?

I have no right to tell you otherwise, but you have no right to take food from another's mouth.

If they can't find food on their own, then their already doomed.

You know everyone can't hunt on their own at the start. You know just have scarce food is.

The strong will live, and the weak shall die. It's as simple as that.

Come now, you know exactly why the weak must thrive. Think about it now.

Lucifer did exactly that. Why must the weak survive? The question puzzled him for a moment before realization hit him. He already knew this answer. In fact, he used this exact same answer to get where he was today.

If there is no "weak", then there is no "strong". One cannot coexistent without the other. Therefore, the weak must be sought after as the strong cannot exist without the weak.

Precisely. Oh, you may want to pay attention. Your little buddy seems to be walking away.

Lucifer snapped back into reality. Perhaps, a little too much. His eyes flew open, though he did not remember closing them, and his gaze landed on the rabbit that was a mere foot away from him. He must of done something when he "woke up" as the rabbit's eyes were also upon him. For a moment, not a single ounce of fear was collected in the dark pits of the rabbit's eyes. It looked completely calm and level-headed. However, Lucifer's heart dropped when he saw the rabbit's gaze turn downward and onto his claws. That is when he saw the color drain from his face. Without a second of hesitation, Lucifer pounced upon the rabbit. The rodent tried to scramble away, but it was far too close to Lucifer and the Sweetling was much too good of a jumper and hunter. The high pitch squeal that rabbits made right before you tore their throats off came for only a second. Lucifer gave the rabbit a nice long red smile at the base of its neck. The tiny thing's neck looked as though it was snapped. It's head was in an awkward position and it's eyes were glazed over. Blood began to pool underneath the rabbit's neck. Its fur stained red and the grass turned into a dark crimson. Standing over the rabbit in triumph, Lucifer bend down to take a bite out of the ripe succulent flesh-

Stop.

Lucifer obeyed, his mouth open and white teeth ready to-.

For what reason do you continue this? Why do you eat just to throw it up later? You can't digest meat, you know that. Yet, you persist in these slaughters. Do you know just how selfish you're being? You're taking lives of animals that could go to your own group or to that of hatchlings still in the birth cave who may wish to join your group someday. Do you not realize just how idiotic you're being? You are a herbivore, not a carnivore, not a omnivore, but a herbivore. Your body requires the sweet fruits that hand from the trees and reside in the bushes. Your body does not need the rough flesh of other living beings. Your purpose does not contain you killing other animals. Under no circumstances are you to even think about killing another living being unless it is in self defense or for the good of the group. You are stealing food from other hatchlings' mouths and you don't care. You get why Favian is so depressed now? He has to deal with the after effects of your work along with the annoying hatchlings in the birth cave who complain he's doing a bad job because they can't find any food! So, how about you ask yourself one little question before you consume that rabbit underneath you. Why? Why do you do it? Why do you eat meat even though you can't digest it?

 

The question, the very essence of it, baffled Lucifer. Why did he eat meat? He thought there was a reason for it. He really thought there was an overwhelmingly good reason for it, but no matter how much he tried to remember, he couldn't come up with anything.

"I..."

There was no reason. He was killing animals for no reason. He was an idiot, a selfish idiot. That food could go into Aerix's mouth, or Medea's or Bathory's or even Rico's. They could eat flesh, but he couldn't.

Why have I been eating it for so long? I just throw it up afterword. What purpose do I have to continue this practice?

Stepping away from the rabbit, Lucifer flicked his long tail to the side, letting the fluffy part at the end to scrape the ground.

"I'm not going to waste my time hunting for something I can't eat," Lucifer proclaimed. "I'm just wasting my time and taking food that could go into another hatchling's mouth." Turning away from the rabbit he had just killed, Lucifer began to pad away from freshly killed prey and made his way into the bushes and away from the clearing.

I see reason for me to pick it up. I'm sure some idiot newborn will come stumbling onto it anyhow. It's not like people seem to care if newborns wander out into the open world and get killed anyway.

Now away from the dead rabbit, Lucifer continued forward and through the forest, with a aura around him.

 

(Anyone is allowed to find that rabbit. I mostly did it so Astra and Demetrio would have something to find. Just keep in mind that you can't waltz outside of the birth cave and expect to find a rabbit at the entrance. The rabbit is a little off in the forest, but not too far. Remember, Lucifer is nowhere near the rabbit. If you want to interact with him, you'll have to go even further into the forest, which no newborn can accomplish without great difficulty and a span of time.)

Edited January 20, 2014 by Doctortear

[Ayesthine]

((So sorry for being ten thousand eons late. I hope this bad post makes up for it.))

 

The hatchling sat staring bright-eyed at the two dragons. More sounds, melodious and warbling, spilled from their lips. One of them seemed to stop and ponder these words in a fit of agitation. One of the sinuous, opalescent heads flapped its jaws open and closed, imitating the movements of the other hatchlings. It rocked forward on the balls of its hands, and inched closer to the pair. Suddenly, the glittering golden one lunged at them. They recoiled, surprised, and instantly wriggled themselves under the sharp, pricking grasp of the other's claws. Nostrils flared in fear, and the hatchling caught the scent of... nothing. This strange, gleaming hatchling smelled like nothing. It was a complete black hole of smell. Red eyes widened, and the lindwurm stilled. It cocked its heads to the side, staring at the snarling face of their surprise adversary. One head squinted and trilled inquisitively. Their long serpentine body coiled and thrashed against the ground, and a slow expression of hurt stole over their faces.

"Wh- " a head stuttered, the humming noise coming slowly from their throat.

"Wh.. y?" it asked, blinking.

--

Wobble kicked his powerful hind legs, stirring the surface of the water. The smell coiled almost visibly around his head, and he forced himself not to retch. "Ugh- Yeah- hnngfgh.." He stuttered, his throat closing and undulating with sudden heaves. "Ggsaghc-guess they lied." He shuddered, and slipped beneath the surface.

He floated, sucking in the cool water through his gills. His eyes closed, and he breathed out a stream of bubbles. "Thank god we can't smell things underwater," he wheezed. A slimy, sticky tendril of the corruption brushed against his cheek. His nose twitched, and his eyes flew open.

He shrieked, and dove down and down into the darkening depths.

Oh god oh god oh god oh god

--

<Bathory? Bathory! Is that really you!>

Sharp words echoed in the tranquility of her mind. A voice, familiar and agitating, beat against her fragile thoughts. Bathory winced, the sudden interruption of her thoughts sending her reeling. The feeling of another's mind so close to her won repulsed her, and she forced herself to stay standing.

Y-yeah, it's me.

Her eyes widened and she shrunk against the wall. Her mind, the only thing she had for two years, was so suddenly and completely invaded by someone who had no right to be there. Her muscles tensed involuntarily as she braced herself for a reply.

--

Lineheart glanced up, watching as Aerix stood shakily. She shook her head, grinding her fangs against the soft flesh of her lips. She sighed, and stepped in front of the Bleeding Moon. Her eyes narrrowed as she looked into the red orbs of the bigger hatchling.

"As much as I hate to say it like this, please don't go. If you leave, the chances of you getting hurt go up too much for me to be comfortable. This- place," she gestured to the crowded cave, "Is chaotic, yes, but it's as safe as this world can get." She bowed her head. "I can't have the injuries of anyone be on my paws. Please, please stay. Any one of the healers and magic users may return, and I'm sure they can help you."

She bit her bleeding lip again, and turned her face away.

God, I hope Favian comes back s-

No. Don't you dare. You can handle this, Lineheart. Gather together some help, and- stop everyone from going out of the cave.

 

((So much pastel oh god my eyes))

[GreatDragon]

 

The hatchling took a few steps back, feeling the tension lessen as the black creature seemed to go back to normal. She watched as the blue creature went into the pool and turned her gaze back to the red and black creatures, listening to the sounds they made. Words were starting to make sense to her, the sounds forming pictures in her head as she thought of them. Blinking slowly, the hatchling sat down, curling her tail so that it touched her clawed feet. She knew now that the black creature used to be hurt, but the blue creature made it go away. Sorting out her thoughts, the Cavern Lurker hatchling shuffled her clawed hands against the ground and concentrated on the two creatures.

 

"He...hu...hurt? Bl....bla....all....ri-ight? No....tri...tro...tro-ble?"

 

Her tongue slipped out of her mouth as she spoke, making the sounds garbled and rough. The hatchling stared at the two creatures, hoping that any response wasn't just a random assortment of sounds. She wanted to understand, to hear and do the same thing they were doing. Being able to do that meant that she would know what was happening around her.

[HomeForFlowers]

Moss had paid no heed to the younger hatchling's fear tainted words. She completely blew it off and instead turned her head to look at Favian. The Purple hatchling looked the exact opposite of calm. His haunches were raised, claws were extended, a long broad tail lashed, and his teeth were bared into a snarl.

"What do you want to do wit-"

"What right have you to harm a couple month old hatchling?" Favian exploded, cutting Moss off. "I ought to give you a lick of the sharp end of my tongue for that." Before Favian could continue to criticize Moss and tell her to go off, the Golden Wyvern was already off of the younger hatchling and several steps away from it. The pretty hatchling sat down and kept her gaze onto the lindwurm.

"I can't be too careful," Moss replied smoothly.

"If what you said was true," Favian snarled. "Then you would of known I wouldn't approve of you attacking a couple month old hatchling." Moss didn't say anything, but a quick glance towards Favian said everything that Favian needed to know. "I had to make sure," those eyes said. Favian believed that, he really that.

That doesn't mean I should approve of it.

Why not? She did what she had to. You would of snapped at her even if it was piece of prey she pounced on. You should be thankful for her being so cautious, not antagonize her for it.

There it was. That same voice again, telling Favian he was wrong, reminding him to not worry so much. Favian was only momentarily agitated at the voice before he realized he was being mad at his own consciousness. The very same consciousness that told him to go out here in the first place.

I need to get my head on straight. I can't keep getting mad at myself.

"Well I doubt that hatchling is going to stick with us now," Favian said, letting himself calm down and sit on the ground. Favian, making sure not to get a step closer to the new hatchling, craned his neck forward and scrutinized the hatchling.

"I've never seen this hatchling before," Favian said, letting the low tones of his voice breach out. "I would say this hatchling's egg was outside of the birth cave, but I remember a egg who's shell was the same color as this hatchling's scales." Favian, feeling a slight twinge in his heart for his seemingly endless memory, recoiled his neck from the hatchling.

"You don't think think this hatchling left the cave at night, do you?" Favian asked, more to himself than to Moss. "God awful nocturnal hatchlings, you'd think they'd listen to me, but no. I tell them to make sure no newborns wander outside and they blow me off! I hope it was just the nocturnal hatchlings being lazy. If it was everyone just being lazy when I was out with Lucifer, then I swear, we're all going to die out due to people not stopping newborns from wandering outside!" It was clear Favian was upset with the mature hatchlings back at the birth cave. He was quite annoyed that they let newborns who had hatched merely minutes prior go outside into the world. Hadn't he lectured them enough? Newborns had to stay inside of the cave unless they were escorted outside by an older hatchling. That way, no newborns would get killed while wandering outside. It seemed, thanks to the laziness of others, this particular hatchling had wandered out of the world and miraculously survived. The poor thing must of nearly died more times than it could count.

Why don't people just listen? I stress over the lives of each one of them everyday and they act like it doesn't matter and even have the nerve to yell at me for getting upset! Am I not allowed to be upset? Do I always have to maintain a certain level of emotion?

Though one could tell Favian was upset, it could also be told, if observed at closely, that he was upset and someone, in this case, people, who were not around.

I nearly go mad and getting glared at is my thanks? I sometimes wonder why I even bother. They don't listen to me when I need them to and come to me when they're in trouble. Selfish little...

 

"They...lied?" Kirk could hardly believe it. The other hatchlings lied. They said the world outside was amazing and they explained how they could hardly live without it. Kirk had believed them. He had spent two years dreaming about how great the outside world was. He thought they were telling the truth, he really did. But this... this was a nightmare, far from a dream come true. It was disgusting and horrible out here. How could anyone like it?

"I... I'm just going to head back to the birth pool," Kirk said with a sigh. With that said, he plunged back underwater.

Thank god we can't smell underwater.

Kirk had begun heading back to the cave entrance when he heard Wobblefoot shriek. Instantly, he turned away and watched Wobble dive down into the depths below.

"Wobble?" Kirk asked in terror. What was he doing? Where was he going? Panicked, Kirk sped away Wobblefoot, praying that his friend wasn't in harm's way.

 

If she wasn't deaf, Alvira was sure her ears would be ringing. Her head hurt horribly and her entire body felt stiff. She retracted her talons towards her chest and squeezed her already shut eyes.

Good god, what happened? How did I get in so much pain?

What had happened? That was a very good question. Alvi's memories were scattered and she could barely comprehend a single thought.

Okay, easy stuff first. What is my name?

Her name? What was it? Was she aa...a...Glaaaas? No, that wasn't it. Aaaa...ala....alv....eee? She was getting somewhere, she knew that for sure. Alv....Alvera? There! She had it! Alvira! Alvi the Black who hung around with the eery fluffy pink guy with hearts on his flank.

I remember my name. What about what happened?

Pain, she had most certainly felt pain. Something hurt her, or, more like someone had hurt her. Someone had hit her with a.... rock! She was hit in the... head! She was hit on the head with a rock! But who had hit her? This took longer for Alvi to process. To remember who had hit her, she had to remember people's names. There was heart flank from earlier. Did he hit her with a rock? No, he didn't hit her. She remembered someone looming over her. Heart flank was too small to hit her. Besides, she would of remembered someone fluffy like him to hit her. Now that she thought about it, whoever had it her was bigger than her as well. She didn't know many people who were bigger than her and knew her well. Was it the big grape smelling guy? It was possible grape hit her. Though, didn't grape have a yellow mustache? She didn't remember a mustache.

It wasn't grape then.

As memories began to resurface, Alvi began to remember a certain person, someone she had strong feelings for. It was a he, she knew that, and he was... blue? Yes, he was blue, all over to be exact. Alvi's eyes fluttered open and her emerald eyes locked onto two nearby shapes.

"Wh..aaa..?"

Alvi couldn't hear her own voice due to her deafness, but it was too soft for the other two to hear either. Alvi closed her eyes for what seemed like a second and opened them again. One of the figures was gone. There was only one figure left, one very familiar figure. She knew his name. She just thought it a moment ago. Alvi's eyelids lifted and her green eyes locked onto the Moonstone, the figure who's name was-

"G-Glas...?"

Edited January 20, 2014 by Doctortear

[Bacon_Strips]

Taking a first few tremulous steps to regain control of himself, Aerix became greatly angered when Lineheart blocked his path, arms shaking madly. The good intentions of her words did not reach the Bleeding Moon, who only grew more annoyed at the group of hatchlings around him. His struggle for independence had hit a roadblock one too many times, the rush of rage filling him.

"Get AWAY from me!!" he bellowed, shoving the Pink violently to the side. "I don't need your damn help, and I don't need to listen to you!! You're not a leader, you're a pest. A pest, like the rest of them! No one needs to worry for me! No one!"

Shooting a final dark glare, he headed towards the mouth of the cave, the occasional misstep failing to deter him. He refused to make eye contact with any of the dragons, determined to express his vexation as clearly as possible.

All of them.....worthless, useless...I wasted my time with them, and I won't do that again...never again...all their fault...

 

Reaching the outside, Aerix squinted at the radiance of the noon sunlight, claws tousling the crisp grass. The sound of a bird overhead rang throughout his thoughts, interest in a meal growing by the second. Despite being accustomed to the area and its geographical features, no hastening was made to decide where he was headed. In utter disregard to order, the Bleeding Moon went off in a random direction, expecting to find food regardless of wherever he ended up.

 

(OOC: I doubt this is needed, but please do not interact with Aerix.)

Edited January 20, 2014 by Bacon_Strips

[Taleena Fuka]

"I guess I could just sit in this half-hole while I wait for Mommy to come back." Looking around more she noticed two small hatchlings playing around or something in the bushes. She also noticed a mean looking hatchling apparently fuming and heading towards a random direction. "Meep… Wouldn't want to be in that dragon's way right now." Rien sank a little bit more into the hole enough so that only her eyes where peeking out, just in case. At least she could put down her vines since she wasn't under ground- they behaved a lot more when she was on the surface. Her gaze then returned to the two small hatchlings as she felt she had nothing better to do.

 

"She sounds… Irritated? Uneasy?" Spira then realized that maybe she disturbed Bathory in some way or another. Her impulse wanted her to continue on talking anyways, but something told her that… That is probably not a bright idea to do. What if Bathory suddenly decided to leave again? This time forever? What if- Spira clenched her paw with her other paw. "Gotta learn to think before I act." Spira took a deep breath and tried to consider her words carefully, <S-sorry for the sudden outburst, I was just glad to see you since its been awhile! I-!>

Spira was about to go into a long widened explanation of why she was using telepathy, about asking her what she was doing for the past 2 years and just about everything there was to talk about under the sun. But one look at how uncomfortable Bathory looked reminded her that she shouldn't be so hasty.

Holding her paws tightly together she tried to hold herself back from overwhelming her. "I need to condense what I want to say, make a good impression! Or um, ummm..!" Spira's tail tapped the group beside her impatiently. "Ah to heck with it, I don't need to ask all those questions or tell what happened to me! There's just one thing that REALLY needs to be said!"

 

Fidgeting a little, her eyes wandering around, Spira finally finished replying, <Welcome back home, Bathory.> Spira's impatience turned into a smile at saying those words, her expression as genuine- tho slightly embarrassed- as can be and her paws unclenched. She wasn't accustomed to being "nice" as one would put it but it felt good to welcome someone back, especially when its been a long time since that dragon has been seen.

 

Michiru felt uneasy at realizing that she mentioned her mother, but she quickly shrugged the feeling away when she didn't feel anything bad happen. "I was just saying as an extra bonus!" Michiru picked at the edible leaves and put as much as she could hold into her arms. With the amount of leaves she was holding, one could barely make out that someone was holding them! It was like a moving pile of leaves now attempting to find the direction to the cave. "W-where's the cave, I can't see anything in these leaves~!" Despite the predicament of carrying too many leaves, Michiru was having fun trying to figure out which way was which. "G-go ahead and just get them, there shouldn't be anything wrong with em if you think there's nothing wrong with them~! Eepp!" Michiru had hit a small pebble and almost dropped all the leaves in surprise. She thought she might've gotten hurt like the pebble scratching her or something, but she didn't feel any pain… "Whew… Eheh. Guess it was nothing."

 

Feather's yelling snapped Hibiki awake and his eyes widened when he saw it was FEATHER he was nuzzling, not Roseanne. He jumped back, releasing her tail- "ACK-" ...and in the process he fell off of the warm nest and onto the home's leaf-covered ground. He scrambled to his feet, but ended up tripping over himself instead. He then rolled to his back, looked at Feather shyly and stuck his tongue out playfully, "W-whoops! Sorry Feather, this is the second time I've done something uncomfortable to you! Ahahaha..!" Hibiki scratched the back of his head and then looked aside for a moment. "Aw, So it was a dream. But it felt so real…" Hibiki finally got back on his feet, "That is, I didn't do anything TOO strange to you this time around did I?"

 

Caught off guard by the blue one's sudden re-entry into the water Rita suddenly darted around the water aggravating her lungs further. When asked the question however, she calmed down. "O-oh. I-I-is that all!" Rita coughed once violently, but then thankfully simmered down to small coughs. "A-as long as I don't let it get the better of me, m-maybe it'll *cough cough* go away." "I- I well…" Her throat was tightening on her, like someone was gripping her from the inside. "I-I just didn't feel like it!" Her eyes were obviously lying, not to mention her constant fidgeting. In fact, she'd probably be crying by now from the pressure if they weren't already underwater. Not being able to take it anymore she darted away from the blue dragon and launched herself into the air a few inches higher than she did the first time around. "Eeekkk!" To Rita, those few inches felt like miles.

 

Edited January 21, 2014 by Taleena Fuka

[HomeForFlowers]

"If you say so..." Clementine said, clearly unconvinced. She began plucking the scarlet berries from the bush. She placed the gathered berries in several neat piles around her. She was uneasy about the gathering of these berries. She wasn't sure if they were good to eat or not. She trusted Michiru, that was for true, but she wasn't exactly sure if these berries were...healthy. Once she had gathered more berries than she could handle, Clem began to gather them up so she could take them back to the birth cave. When Michiru fell, Clem looked over at her friend and blinked in concern.

"Are you alright?" she called to the fragile hatchling.

 

[Taleena Fuka]

"I'm fine~ And I got all the leaves too, didn't drop one of them!" Michiru tried to look over her pile of leaves in vain. "I'm sure Lineheart or someone else will know if those berries are good or not." Michiru slithered forward still somewhat unsure of the right way, but never the less she pressed on.

Edited January 21, 2014 by Taleena Fuka

[Coryn02]

(Sorry for the very late and short post guys. I'll be doing something more soon enough.)

 

 

"Well, out there, of course!"

 

Astra smiled at Demetrio and ran ahead. Forgetting his initial worries, he ran after her to catch up.

 

"Hey, wait up! If we're actually going in there, I want to go too!"

 

He followed her into the lush greenery before them. He knew that this was a 'forest', and these green things in it were 'trees'.

 

How do I know all these things? This is a forest with trees in it... Could my parents have told me this much?

 

Demetrio gazed in wonder at the massive trees, towering above the forest floor. These things were enormous.

 

This place is so weird... I like it.

Edited January 21, 2014 by Coryn02

[HomeForFlowers]

"O-Okay!" Clem replied as she wobbly tried to follow Michiru. It was a challenge to walk and carry the berries at the same time. Clem had managed to drop several berries before she got use to carrying the scarlet berries. Nevertheless, it was still difficult. She wished she didn't have to carry as big of a pile as she was, but what could she do about?

I hope we're close to the birth cave...

[Lilithachaos]

Aysu's head tilted as she watched the Seawyrm in some amount of confusion and worry, but she was not really sure what was going on. Why was she coughing? Mind immediately went to Kurai and his choking, but restrained herself from darting over to start patting at the newborn's back. Knowing her luck at the moment she would frighten the other hatchling since she was getting the impression that the Seawyrm was skittish. "If you don't wa-," she started to say before the Seawyrm darted up to the surface, startling Aysu in the sudden action as she was not expecting it at all.

 

She stayed where she was for a few moments to watch the Seawyrm, but soon shook herself out of the whole dumbfounded moment to actually move. 'Should I follow her or do I go get fish?' Aysu questioned herself as she tried to decide on an action to take. She wanted to make sure the Seawyrm was alright, but what if the newborn had been trying to get away from her? She could always get fish to smooth things over if that was the case. Then again, what if she was wrong and something was indeed wrong with the Seawyrm? 'My head hurts.' She finally just shoved all the confusing thoughts away before making her mind up to swim towards the Seawyrm once more. "Are you sure you are alright?" This was asked as she moved to gently nudge the hatchling's side while adding, "You're not choking are you?"

 

Medea swam in the deeper parts of the water before turning back to the more shallower ends to see if the movements had done much effect on getting the residue off. Looking back to her leg as she lifted as much of it out of the water as she could, but gave an annoyed growl at seeing only some of sticky reside had come off. 'Well that leaves with trying to rub it off, but I am not using my paw to do it. Likely it would just transfer to that limb. Hmm, smart of him again if that was the goal,' was mused as she placed her leg back into the water and looked to her surroundings for anything that might be of use in scrubbing.

 

Nothing stood out to her and the clenching of her claws was the only thing that gave her the hint to look down. "Oh this will do," she mused out-loud as a large handful of the riverbed was grabbed up, slit and small pebbles held in her grasp to be used as a buffer between her hind-leg and her paw. Once she sat and started in on the scrubbing she lost track of all time, focused on her goal of getting this stuff off as it was doing so slowly now. Grabbing new handfuls of the riverbed when it was needed was the only time she gave herself pause and stopped only when she thought all of the residue was gone. The itching and burning that had started to turn for the painful was now only what she would call a minor itch, burning only when she touched her leg. 'Much better,' she thought to herself as she finally stepped out of the water and up onto the bank. A quick look to her hind-leg showed the reside was indeed gone and only the minor lingering effects remained, something she hoped would dull with enough time. 'I think I will dry off and then go look for Aerix.' Medea made her way up onto a good sized bolder that lay in the sun not to far away, climbing up and plopping herself down to bask in the light.

[Fiirewolvar]

Astra laughed in happiness. Everything seemed so great now. She had a new friend, and they were going to go and get some food together! She whipped her head around, looking for a small animal, and listened hard. Nothing. Just the sound of wind in the trees. She sniffed around a bit, but didn't smell anything either. 'Hmmmm...' She perked up slightly upon seeing something red, but her heart fell when she saw that it was only a flower. Maybe it was useful to another hatchling? She leaned down and smelt the flower. It was sweet, and made her smile. 'Mmm...' she then turned back to see the other hatchling, looking around at the trees. She walked up to it, and said, 'There doesn't seem to be many creatures around here. Or, if there is, then they're keeping quiet and hiding...' maybe if she went deeper into the forest? But she didn't want to go too far from the birth cave... She had an idea: the lake! She thought hard about which direction the lake was in, then started heading that way. 'Follow me! There's a lake in this direction, I think. And there is more likely to be animals around there.'