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Post by Tiger on Jun 24, 2010 21:49:56 GMT -5
The green-gray falcon navigated the air currents with all the expertise one would expect of a raptor. Just as wolves belonged in the forests, so did the falcon to the air, and all this despite having never flown before, possessing only rudimentary instincts, and the faint muscle-memory of falcons Tiger had created before it.
Impressive though it was in that regard, it was difficult to say the bird had a mind of its own. The peregrine stared unblinkingly at the gargantuan purple dragon it trailed through the air; at regular intervals, the opaque round eyes took in the entire terrain, carefully gathering landmarks to “report” to the mage upon its return. The falcon showed no reaction to the eventual appearance of a second mage, or that of the third, despite the semi-transparent, sweet-smelling figure that would have drawn any outwardly-aware creature’s attention.
Eventually, the falcon came to rest on the roof of a building, its talons silently scraping at the shingles for purchase. The gray-green bird quickly scanned the streets, pausing for a moment at the large, guarded gates; Tiger had sent falcons with instructions to observe entrance and exits enough times that it was now instinctive for her usual cast of spying birds.
When a woman in deep purple robes, with purple dragon wings, appeared at the gate, the falcon was able to make the obvious connection. Clacking its beak silently, the bird took wing, riding the currents back toward the forest. As far as the bird was concerned, its mission was complete.
Back in the woods, Tiger had considered moving along before the falcon at last returned to her. Much as she enjoyed peace and quiet, the mage found long periods of inactivity somehow stressful. Once, she would have done anything to spend this much time doing absolutely nothing- and in some ways, that was the problem. Though she tried not to be pessimistic, tried to accept the consequences of her own stupidity as well as she could, there were a lot of things Tiger missed about the days before her…change.
She was fiddling with the long ivory tooth around her neck, when she felt the distinctive presence of one of her mist creatures. Rising to her feet, reclasping her belt and its large scabbard around her waist, Tiger squinted toward the sky, and soon spotted the slender bird hurtling toward her. Rather than cringing from the strike of the falcon’s beak, Tiger extended her hand to it, palm outward, as if expecting the falcon to pull to a halt when faced with the universal “stop!” sign.
The bird’s beak plunged into her palm- and the rest of the bird followed, the gray-green mist being painlessly reabsorbed by the mage. Along with the falcon came its “report”- literally, a rapid right-before-her-eyes experience as the bird’s memories of its trip became Tiger’s own.
“Recalling” the journey, Tiger frowned slightly at the remembered sight of the purple-robed woman approaching the gates, dragon wings sprouting from her back. “That’s very interesting,” she muttered, feeling as if the phrase were familiar, but unable to grasp where she might have heard it (on the other side of the fourth wall, however, an author smirked).
More interesting was what the wings suggested- that the woman had also been the dragon. Tiger had never heard of such magic- but then, no mage she had ever met had heard of hers, and just as often, their methods had been foreign as well. A stir of excitement coiled within her- a mage who could turn into a dragon, accompanied at a distance by at least two others. Were they…a community, of some sort?
”Well,” she thought, fiddling with the strap of her satchel, ”you’ll never find out by standing here, Tiger.”
In a few moments, Tiger was hoisting herself onto the back of a horse. Its gray-green color had been hidden by subtle but complex enchantments, ones Tiger didn’t resort to unless worried about being spotted. Her mount wore the somewhat flamboyant patterning of a pinto, splattered with orange and black blotches. The reins, bridle, and saddle were actually extensions of the mist creature itself, though once again, enchantments hid that little fact.
Nudging the horse’s sides, Tiger urged the mist creature through the trees, and eventually, onto a well-worn deer trail. The falcon’s map should be enough to guide her to the mysterious gated city, where it seemed a group of mages might make their home. Perhaps it was time to come out of exile.
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Post by Omni on Jun 25, 2010 13:26:52 GMT -5
<Mage Manor - Kitchen>
[Ignore the awkward mage there. How are you doing?]
Omni almost gave one of her usual responses, but then decided to go with something a little more fitting for the situation. "Er... Meditative," she said, not going into detail.
She also decided not to bother asking what was going on at the moment. It probably wasn't that interesting. Well, it was probably as 'not that interesting' as things could get in the Manor.
Instead, she turned toward what was left on her plate. Using her claw-nails, she picked out a piece of chicken, giving it to the Aly cat. "Careful, it's hot," she warned. After that gesture, she looked across her plate again. "Do you like cheese?" she asked. She knew that some cats liked cheese. Then again, this wasn't an ordinary cat, so she was less likely to be picky. At any rate, it was a milk-based product...
It was then that she noticed something. It wasn't something she saw, it was more like something she 'felt.' "Rikku? Did something happen?" she said, turning to the one that she knew as the 'death mage.' "Your aura..."
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Post by Scar on Jun 26, 2010 2:18:26 GMT -5
"Repay me? I think not milady. I did only what any gentleman would've done in those circumstances and I certainly don't expect any repayment for honest to goodness good will." At this he winked and flashed her a grin. "However if you wish to repay me in other ways I certainly wouldn't mind."
"And what way would this be, Mr. Featherstone?" asked Sarinon after a moment, wrapping herself up tighter and returning his grin with a gentle smile of her own.
Oscar, Gentleman Adventurer, coloured a little, an odd occurrence that he noticed was getting more and more common the more time he spent in Lady Sarinon's presence. There was just something about the way she smiled at him ...
"Well, I was thinking a fair maiden like yourself might have a kiss for the daring hero?" he said softly, only a hint of his natural cheekiness in his tone.
Lady Sarinon smiled and leant in closer to kiss the man on his cheek. "Will that suffice, Mr. Featherstone?" she asked, her voice soft and cheeks flushed.
"F ... For now." His hand moved to poke at the embers with a stick, as if to get them a little warmer, but in the sanctuary of his mind, Oscar, Gentleman Adventurer, was conflicted. Why did I hesitate? he told himself. Why am I letting Sarinon have such an effect on me? Keep your head, Oscar, she just another mark.
Ah but she's not just another mark is she? She's special.
Shut up.
So special in fact that you can't bear to see her hurt. Maybe you're even falling in --
Shut up!
"Mr. Featherstone?"
"Yes?" the surprised man swept his head around to face the woman beside him, admonishing himself for his less than debonair comeback, only to be shocked into silence when Sarinon planted a kiss on his lips. "I ... ah ..." he mumbled.
"Good night, Mr. Featherstone. We'll need some sleep if we're to arrive at Brassport by tomorrow," she said, smiling peacefully at him as she got to her feet. "And sleep well." With that she headed off in the direction of her tent, leaving the speechless adventurer staring off into the night.
That was last night.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 26, 2010 4:49:43 GMT -5
“No news, then,” Emily murmured glumly. Leena patted her on the shoulder in a consoling kind of way.
“Though there is some talk in the streets that the Archmage of Mage Manor has arrived. Things are pretty tense, what with her being the dragon that destroyed a lot of Brassp-“ Leena paused, looking at Emily whose entire body had suddenly gone rigid.
“The dragon?” she asked, teeth clenched.
“Well, yes,” puffed Leena. She was about to add that the Archmage had come seeking an alliance, but Emily was already up and out of the hall faster than a mouse fleeing a farmer’s wife. Leena sighed.
Out in the street, Emily paused only to ask where the dragon mage was before speeding off in that direction. That vile creature was one of the two who tried to kill Lady Sarinon, and Emily would stop at nothing for revenge. Madness had taken her fully.
***
Evening the day after their kiss had Lady Sarinon, Oscar Featherstone and a small army of sheeple emerge from the stand of trees to face the makeshift gates of the north side of Brassport. The sheeple wore their olive cloaks as instructed by Oscar, while Lady Sarinon approached the gateman, her soft smile gracing her pale face.
“Good evening, sir,” she said, unable to see the man properly, “I wonder if you might let a few lowly travelers into the city before it gets too dark?”
The gatekeeper appeared to scrutinize the group and then shook his head. “Sorry missy, none gets in after sunset. Mayor’s orders, see? An’ you folks over ‘ere, yer wearing yer cloaks an’ all that.”
Oscar trod on Malinovka’s hoof just before the sherson was about to speak. His voice was a dead giveaway. Instead, he stepped forward and lowered his hood for the gatekeeper, walking to Sarinon’s side and flashing his winning grin.
“My good fellow, we are but simple country folk, much like yourself, I imagine, and all we wish is for you to open up that door and let us into the safety of the city. Do you see? It is a small thing to ask.” Mr Featherstone chanced a glance at Sarinon who was determined to ignore him.
“You want in, huh? And yer only simple folks, eh?” The gatekeeper was looking slightly bemused; perhaps by the general aura of impressiveness Oscar was so good at exuding. He gave the appearance of one much more important than he actually was. “Well …” the gatekeeper pondered for a while and then grinned himself. “I’ll let you in fer a kiss from the noble lady.”
At the most inconvenient time imaginable, Sarinon passed out.
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Post by Celestial on Jun 26, 2010 9:13:09 GMT -5
((Brassport- Mayor's Office))
"Oh look, it's the dragon. Come in."
Celestial frowned for a brief second. On one hand, the Mayor being so non-chalanant was a relief but on the other, you don't react this way when you see somebody who destroyed a good part of your city three months ago. Plus it was slightly disrespectful to address a fellow guild leader that way, no matter what. But hey, she wasn't going to cause a fuss here. Her being here was obviously a sore point with the Brassportians already.
The dragon mage bowed deeply, stretching her wings out to show respect and went in, sitting down in a chair next to the Mayor's desk.
"Thank you for seeing me, Sir. I'm going to be frank and just say what I want. For the past three months, your city has been adjusting itself to our world and I'm sure that by now you wish to start making connections. You are not very different from us mages and I have noticed that. Deny it all you wish but advanced technology can still be treated as magic.
My point is, I wish for an alliance between us, one which will benefit both Mage Manor and Brassport,"
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Post by Deleted on Jun 26, 2010 9:42:07 GMT -5
"Shapeshifter?" That was one of the mages - Aly, was it? The healer looked at her and nodded. "Where, and can I kill it?"
The next second or so was an awkward silence. Then Aly corrected herself; apparently she wanted to train against the shapeshifter. Well, that would have advantages, since it was an effective way to test one's adaptability. However, the shapeshifter in question... well, there was a problem.
"Some of us wouldn't mind if you did kill him, frankly," the nurse said, placing the bowl of soup on a tray and lifting it. "He's... not very nice, to put it politely. Trouble is, he's also very skilled. Drakhé attacked him and was--he was impaled in seconds."
She sighed and shook her head once more. At least that fight hadn't dragged on; the dragon might not have survived if it had. And if he truly was a soul without a body...
"Anyway, Drakhé's recovering. He just needs some food to help with that. You could visit him if you wanted--he's in the infirmary--but I think he might be in a bad mood at the moment."
And he's not the only one, she mentally added as she left the kitchen.
--
The infirmary had darkened further still. By the time the healer entered, it was almost impossible to see... but one could hear snarling, and ripping and tearing noises. That could only mean one thing...
"Drakhé! Stop pulling off your bandages!"
And almost instantly, a spotlight from out of seemingly nowhere shone from the ceiling right on the bed where the dragon was. Several facts instantly became obvious: first, he was not wearing a shirt (just a pair of pants). Second, there were bandages on his arms as well as around his torso.
Third, he was trying to pull the bandages off of his right arm with his teeth, exposing a nasty-looking gash underneath.
Or at least, he had been. Now he looked like a deer caught in headlights - or rather, a dragon caught doing something he should not have been doing (the latter would have been a far more apt description).
The nurse put down the tray and began replacing his bandages, lecturing him once more while doing so. Drakhé's expression showed some obvious irritation.
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Post by Jina on Jun 26, 2010 18:13:58 GMT -5
Brassport, Owen's House/Office
"Thank you for seeing me, Sir. I'm going to be frank and just say what I want. For the past three months, your city has been adjusting itself to our world and I'm sure that by now you wish to start making connections. You are not very different from us mages and I have noticed that. Deny it all you wish but advanced technology can still be treated as magic.
My point is, I wish for an alliance between us, one which will benefit both Mage Manor and Brassport,"
Owen shrugged, and nodded. "It's an idea. Not sure how many people in this place are going to like it. It's probably best if we discuss this in my office, follow me."
He led Celestial up the stairs to his office, then spoke again. "Of course, I should really just be asking you for money, given what's happened."
---
Two months ago.
Brassport, the Town Hall
Barrett stood, shivering. This was not a good time to be on night duty.
He'd been looking after the collapsed town hall, which still had some documents hidden away in the rubble. Since it had been destroyed, the Mayor had decided to have it created as several new buidlings. He would get his own house-slash-office, and there would be a building for the leaders of the militia, and so on. Barrett didn't quite understand the reasoning behind this, but the new Mayor had a habit of doing things that were a bit... strange.
He suddenly turned as he heard a clang, coming from the wreckage. It didn't take him long to spot a pair of looters, running. They'd pushed some rubble over, and two metal bars had banged together. He approaced the rubble to see what they were up to, and found a vault, lying wide open. Luckily, it was still full of documents, nothing seemed to have been taken. A few things were lying around, though.
Barrett started stuffing them back into the vault, when he noticed something on one of the pieces of paper. A drawing of an amulet. He held his lamp closer, and started to make out some words.
He managed to read it trough several times before he heard his Captain call out. He quickly stuffed the document back into the vault, and then shut the vault. He stood up. "I'm here, sir. Everything is okay."
"Alright, good man."
He smiled as he watched the Captain walk away. He'd just read one of Brassport's big secrets. He knew how to make anti-magic.
Two months later.
Brassport, Barrett's house
Barrett stumbled through the door. It was as he'd thought - the rats had escaped again. The cage had a hole in it, and he still didn't know how they'd managed to make it.
He was still having problems, making the anti-magic amulet. Okay, so it hadn't taken him long to stop the rats from dying the moment they came close the amulet, but he still couldn't work out what was making them start acting so strangely. He'd almost arrived at the conclusion that it had nothing to do with anything wrong in the amulet itself, it was just that the lack of magic caused insanity somehow.
At least it was working. He'd bought a potion from a somewhat dodgy trader while on holiday in Tabloid Town, and if he poured it over the amulet, it started to slow down and fall to the side. He wasn't quite sure how strong the potion was* , but the amulet ought to at least slightly slow down anything a witch threw at him.
The witches... now that they were here, Barrett felt drawn to the amulet. He wasn't old enough to have been around when the witches were still a part of Brassport's society, but he'd heard stories. The witches were evil.
Barrett picked up the amulet, and held it in front of him. The rats had started acting a bit funny. He probably would too. But if that was the price he'd have to pay for not being blown out of the sky, he'd pay it.
He took a deep breath, and put the amulet on.
* The trader had told him it was very strong, but Barrett had the sneaking suspicion that the trader, in fact, had no idea.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 27, 2010 10:28:39 GMT -5
<<Mage Manor>>Lika was visibly pleased at the hospitality Omni offered her. [ Thank you,] she said, taking the chicken in mouth. One of the advantages with mental speech was that a full mouth didn't interfere with it. [ And yes, I'm used to most foods you humans eat.] "Rikku? Did something happen? Your aura..."Ah, that was right. Omni was good with auras. Normally, that would be an ability reserved for dark mages, but...Speaking of dark mages. Lika looked over to where Aly was standing, and found the spot suddenly unoccupied. The door to the kitchen shut as the Felyr glared at it. Oh, come on. Did she have to go fetch the mage again? ...No, forget that. She sighed and looked back at Omni's plate. There was only so much silence and contrariness she could take from Aly. Best to rest for a bit. *** "Some of us wouldn't mind if you did kill him, frankly. He's... not very nice, to put it politely. Trouble is, he's also very skilled. Drakhé attacked him and was--he was impaled in seconds."
"Anyway, Drakhé's recovering. He just needs some food to help with that. You could visit him if you wanted--he's in the infirmary--but I think he might be in a bad mood at the moment."A fight. A legitimate fight, that she could take part in without worrying and no one would care what happened, where she could actually let loose and test some things, Where I can actually inflict some pain without worrying if it's friend or foe--She stopped that thought quickly. Bad train of thought. Did not want to go down that road. The mage slowed slightly as she went out into the hall, thinking. A shapeshifter...that could be annoying. You'd need a surprise attack, or a good trap, to stop it, and then either need to kill or incapacitate it quickly. Not easy, but she had a good idea of how to do it. It was highly unlikely that something would be immune to dark and fire magic at the same time, and even if that were the case, a physical attack would likely catch them... So she thought as she neared the infirmary. She knocked, waited a few moments, and strode in, finding the nurse tending to a patient. Probably him, then. "'Ey there, mind if I talk to you for a bit?" Aly could be really oblivious at times.
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Post by Lord Hayati on Jun 27, 2010 13:16:33 GMT -5
Krisseh nodded With Celestial's words.
"Besides, I think we can both accomplish a lot, to improve ourselves..."
Of course, It would set back her own plans... but phoey, she always backed them up. But, if she had to act as a town cook for a bit... She'd agree to it. The manor gargoyles were always getting in her way while cooking... and for once, she'd just like a place like the shenkuu teahouse, where she can cook, chat, and relax.
Not that world jellification would be nice as well.
"If you need an additonal cook, I'm willing to apply."
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Post by Deleted on Jun 28, 2010 3:33:06 GMT -5
The mages called him Drakhé. He called himself Dragon Man. Some of them said that it was a stupid nickname, and its shortened version ("D-Man") was even worse. As far as he was concerned, he did not think of himself as Drakhé... or, at least, not the one they were thinking of.
Once again, the nurse lectured him, while she was replacing the bandages. But they were mages; this human woman knew healing magic. So why did she not just cast some spells to heal his wounds? Even with potions that made people heal faster, he would have to remain in the infirmary for gods-knew how long while he recovered. And this specific nurse would keep on feeding him, lecturing him...
Fortunately, there was a chance to escape from the nurse's hands. Another mage entered and asked a question: "'Ey there, mind if I talk to you for a bit?"
The healer looked up and spoke. "He's been trying to remove his bandages. Drakhé hasn't eaten yet--"
"You're not speaking on my behalf."
She froze. D-Man lifted his arm and gently pushed the woman's hands away, then turned his gaze to the one who had entered. He wordlessly climbed onto the floor and crossed the distance between the bed and his visistor.
Have I seen this mage before?
He folded his arms, and though he wasn't much taller than the other mage, he still looked down at her. The dragon was silent for a moment, but he knew what he was going to say.
"What can I do for you, mage?"
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Post by Celestial on Jun 28, 2010 10:35:02 GMT -5
((Brassport))
"It's an idea. Not sure how many people in this place are going to like it. It's probably best if we discuss this in my office, follow me." the Mayor said and headed up to his office. Celestial, glad to have found a reasonable authority figure, followed him.
"Of course, I should really just be asking you for money, given what's happened," he added. The Archmage lowered head and nodded.
"I understand what you mean by that and rest assured that we shall repair any damage as best as we possibly can, although perhaps some of our skills may not be suited to repair work," she began and moved onto the most important point.
"Many will be opposed, yes. Considering what I've done, I wouldn't be surprised if there is opposition. Hopefully though, much of it will be peaceful and the Mage guild can work with you to make relations better and in time cooperate, leaving the bad past behind us. Your alchemy and technology plus our magic can be unsto-" Celestial decided to switch words around, in case she said something she'd regret later "Work wonders together. If you give us this chance, I guarantee we shall not disappoint you or your guild."
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Post by Deleted on Jun 28, 2010 10:53:16 GMT -5
<<Mage Manor>>
Aly shrugged in a slight apology to the nurse as the dragon stood. Interesting. She hadn't really noticed his appearance before, but not much surprised her anymore.
There was a moment of silence. Looking down? She considered trying to correct that, but it'd be unfair if he were that injured, and besides--she wasn't in the mood for it right now. So she just raised a brow at him.
"What can I do for you, mage?"
"I heard you'd gotten into a fight with a shapeshifter," she said bluntly. "To put it shortly, it's sounds like a threat, and I've got nothing better to do. Anything you could tell me about it or your fight?"
Something felt odd as she finished, and it took a moment to realize what it was. "Oh, right. Sorry." The mage extended a hand. "I don't think we've really talked to each other. Allianne, but just call me Aly. Not suited to formality."
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Post by Deleted on Jun 28, 2010 20:52:38 GMT -5
So word had gotten around about the fight. Perhaps the healer had told this mage; that seemed likely. When she all but stated that she wanted to try fighting the shapeshifter herself, and asked him for what he could tell her, D-Man's eyes went wide in surprise.
She's insane. She wouldn't last a minute.
And then the other one had introduced herself - her name was Allianne, but people called her Aly. She extended her hand. After hesitating for a moment, the dragon extended his own.
"I'm a dragon-man. People around here call me Drakhé - means 'dragon' in some old language. No idea which one."
With that, he took his hand in hers and shook it briefly before releasing his grasp. The dragon let his arm fall back to his side.
"Yes, I was in a fight with a shapeshifter... Locke, I believe his name was. He's always a male for some reason. I suppose he wouldn't be caught dead as a woman," he stated dryly. "He was quite direct. Impaled me in seconds, and would have opened my head if I didn't shield it." D-Man rubbed one of his arms as he said that.
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Post by icon on Jun 28, 2010 23:04:42 GMT -5
{Brassport}
Eli did a double take that would have made a cinematographer proud, if any had been around. Yes. the rat was wearing goggles. A small pair of goggles, each lens no larger than a coin in diameter, stood on the rat's head.
Eli stared. The rat matched his stare with one of its own. Two pairs of eyes interlocked, one with a pair of goggles on his face, one with a pair on its head.
Eventually, after a short period of time, Eli Clenman took a cautious step toward the rat, only for it to scurry away on it's legs, run a short distance toward a sewer entrance, and turn to look back at him. The rat looked at him, got up on it's hind legs, and jumped into the hole like any normal person would do (providing that said person was small enough to fit in the hole in the beginning anyway).
Eli stared at the spot the rat was, his expression blank, his mind a mix of, "was that a rat with goggles?", "how did it walk on its hind legs?", and the good old, generic, "what the heck just happened?" His feet rooted there in the middle of the crowded street, Eli Clenman stood there.
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Post by Jina on Jun 29, 2010 17:18:56 GMT -5
Brassport, Owen's office
"If you need an additonal cook, I'm willing to apply."
"I think we're more worried about running out of supplies, to be honest."
"I understand what you mean by that and rest assured that we shall repair any damage as best as we possibly can, although perhaps some of our skills may not be suited to repair work."
"Many will be opposed, yes. Considering what I've done, I wouldn't be surprised if there is opposition. Hopefully though, much of it will be peaceful and the Mage guild can work with you to make relations better and in time cooperate, leaving the bad past behind us. Your alchemy and technology plus our magic can be unsto- work wonders together. If you give us this chance, I guarantee we shall not disappoint you or your guild."
Owen looked up at the avoidance of the word "unstoppable". That could be... no, better not.
"It's worth discussing, I agree."
A rat ran across the room. Wait, does that rat have goggles on? Don't tell me someone's been experimenting with airships run by vermin again... He shook his head, and looked at Celestial. "Anyway, question is, what are you offering us?"
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