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 Posted: Sat Jan 14, 2012 5:48 pm
Field Experiments
Another day, another round of practice.
Tian Yue stood again in the same fields, Toki standing alert and ready at his side as the Dragon King manipulated and tested his power. It felt, perversely, as if he was stretching out another layer of skin, of scales, to encompass the fields. His awareness extended to the edges, and he twitched as Toki walked into the area of effect. "That tickles!"
The Aoide stopped and put his hands on his hips. "My Lord, your entire purpose is to hold your protection around living things!"
"I didn't say I wasn't going to do it! I just said that it tickled." Tian Yue shook his head. The thought of dozens - hundreds - potentially millions of beings moving around like that made his skin crawl for a moment. It would be like being poked with feathers every moment of the day. "How on earth did Shaiming stand it?!"
"I assume that one gets used to it?" Toki looked thoughtful. "You are ticklish of skin, correct, my Lord?"
"...Yes," Tian Yue admitted, though he gave the Aoide a suspicious look. He was fairly sure that Morgan had been the only one who knew that particular fact. He really needs to stop eavesdropping.
"Yet does your clothing tickle and prickle you? It too touches your skin."
"Hmmm... no, it doesn't. I suppose it could be similar... just develop a resistance to it, get used to how it feels. Like with my tail, how it was so sensitive when I was newly reborn. Good analogy."
Toki blushed primly. "It is an honor to serve, my Lord."
"Now..." Tian Yue let the shield drop. "Let's see that map."
"Yes, my Lord." Toki knelt on the ground and produced the town map, spreading it out on the brittle grass and putting small rocks on the corners to keep it from rolling up again. A large red spot had been added, indicating the Pantheon.
"Hmm." Tian Yue crouched, curling his tail neatly behind him for balance. "Say, perhaps, just outside the Pantheon..." He traced a circle around the red spot with one claw. "And how far, then?"
"You could encase all of the city in your scales if you stretched to your utmost, my Lord," Toki replied. "Yet I am not sure that would be wise."
Tian Yue made a face. Toki was right. While he could make the shield big enough to protect the entire city, it took an intense amount of concentration to do so, and while he could probably keep it up indefinitely, he wouldn't really have mana or even a moment's thought to spare for other concerns. No. It would be much safer to do something that could be maintained more reasonably. "I agree. Let's see... I want to protect as much as I can without spending all of my power and concentration on the shield alone..." He stood up. "Let's practice. Stay here. I will shift my power until I find a good balance. Then you will go out and find out how far the protection goes."
"As you say, Lord," Toki said, jumping up and nodding.
Tian Yue took a deep breath, then concentrated. His power came eagerly, and he pushed his scales out as far as they would go, until his face paled under the strain. The decision was obvious. No. I could never do anything else if I tried this level of exertion.
He pulled the shield inward; relief was instant. Not too far... but no, not too close inwards, either. Too small would be pointless. He would have to maintain the shield in the back of his mind all the time; that was just the way things had to be. Tian Yue played with it, shifting his power, larger and smaller, testing. Not too large as to incapacitate me for all else, not too small as to be pointless... where's the happy medium...
After a good bit of fiddling, he found it. There! That's it. That is balanced. "Toki," he said aloud.
"At once, my Lord!" The Aoide sprang into the air, beating his wings rapidly. He was gone in a moment; TIan Yue twitched as Toki dove into the shield's area of effect. He could feel where Toki was, as if the Aoide were a worm crawling under his flesh-
Oh, stop that. That is legitimately foolish, he informed himself, and practiced not caring - if something required his attention, it would make itself known, but he did not need to spend care and awareness on every tickle and prickle of life within his coils.
It seemed to work, much to the Dragon King's relief. While that degree of sensitivity could be useful, he had no desire to maintain it all the time. Perhaps such awareness only worked with his own Aoide. He wasn't sure, and right now, that wasn't important.
At last, he sensed Toki leave the shield, then turn immediately and come back in. Tian Yue forced himself to do other things while he waited - thinking about other problems, flying around a bit, trying to approximate his normal activity while still maintaining the shield. To his delight, it wasn't half as hard as he'd feared-
"My lord!"
"Gah!" Tian Yue jumped in the air, then quickly checked on the shield; it had shuddered a bit, but not decreased in size. "Stop that!"
The Aoide grinned; he'd swooped in above the Dragon King's head. "I do apologize, my Lord, but it is a good test, yes?"
"Yes, yes - now tell me what you found," Tian Yue said impatiently, a little embarrassed. Perhaps his dulling of that awareness had worked too well. He dipped down to land on the ground below, Toki following suit at once. As soon as the Aoide landed, he stood at full attention.
"My Lord, as it stands now, you are protecting a circular area fully twelve miles across, from end to end." He crouched and peered at the map. "If you begin the protection around the Pantheon..."
"Then it would cover about two-thirds of the city." Tian Yue grinned. That was better than he had hoped for. That was enough space to make things safe, to draw mortals in closer to the gods. True, there were some gods that he didn't particularly want closer to mortals, like Phaedra, but that wasn't his choice to make. At any rate, they'd have to work if they wanted to use their strength inside his coils. "Perfect. That is perfect. Do you know if any deities live inside that area?"
"I do not, unfortunately." Toki drooped a bit. "I hope that it will not intrude on other deities in their temples. It is so difficult now. Before, everyone lived all in one place... all in one realm. A place separate from that of mortals. But when it faded..." The Aoide sighed. "It all became one. Perhaps in the future it can be re-established."
"Mmm... I think I remember that, since you mention it." That would explain the faint awkwardness around his shields now. The situation that he had been created to maintain simply no longer existed. Like Nergal and his Starless Lands, only less personal. "As you say, perhaps in the future. But for now..."
"Shall we prepare?" Toki asked, hopefully.
Tian Yue wanted to say yes at once, but he forced himself to stop and think. "No... no, there's one other thing I need to work on. Something that Penny saw as a problem at the Gallery of Celestia - when I slept, the shield would drop." He made a face.
"Oh... oh. Oh dear." Toki's wings drooped.
"I'll leave the shield active here..." Tian Yue's voice trailed off. No, there was nothing for it. He needed to know at once if he was failing to maintain the shield, but he couldn't in good concience erect it inside the Pantheon. "No. I'll stay here. Toki... go get a tent. A sleeping bag. Something."
"Oh! Are we going camping, my Lord?" the Aoide asked, brightly.
"... Something like that."
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Posted: Sat Jan 14, 2012 5:49 pm
Naughty Dragons Don't Get Sleep
All was peaceful, still, quiet-
"Ow!"
Tian Yue sat up, flinching and blinking blearily at Toki. The Aoide was crouched guiltily at the end of Tian Yue's makeshift pallet, one hand hovering over the Dragon King's unprotected foot, which he had just pinched. Hard. Tian Yue gave him a dirty look.
"I am sorry, my Lord, but the shield has collapsed again," Toki whimpered.
Tian Yue sighed and rubbed at his eyes. He was tired. The tent Toki had scrounged up from who-knows-where smelled of mildew and rot, and the lovely blankets from his rooms in the Pantheon were blatantly out of place against the ugly army-green tarp. But the shield, the damn ******** shield...
Tian Yue snapped the shield back into being, shoved it firmly into place, gave Toki another glare and flomped backwards into his 'bed'. His toes ached from all the pinches. This was at least the sixth time! No shield... no sleep... ungh...
Obviously it was possible. He was convinced that Shai- he, that he had slept before. But maybe it hadn't been as necessary then as it was for him now, still young, still rooted in mortal form. Still, the Worldshield simply couldn't have had the protection drop and waver every time he did something that required more concentration or distraction than usual!
There had to be a way.
Ungh...
...
"OW! Toki!"
"I'm sorryyyyyy!"
------
"Mmmph..."
Tian Yue yawned and opened his eyes, blinking at the sight of the tent wall slanting above him. It took him a moment to remember where he was. Oh... tent. Camping. Right. Sh...
Sheild!! He sat bolt upright, fumbling out, feeling for his power. Toki had fallen asleep at the foot of his 'bed', snoring and wheezing with one hand still reached out as if ready to pinch.
Shield-
It was still there.
It was still there!
Beaming with a surge of sudden delight, Tian Yue mentally inspected it. It was there, still as strong as it should be, still right where it should be... it had worked! His toes would be sore for days and the blankets might never lose the stink of old tent, but it had worked! They had managed to train his subconscious into supporting the shield while he slept.
"Toki!" Filled with energy, he reached down and shook the Aoide's shoulder.
"Nngh. Mpfg... my-my Lord?"
"It worked! The shield is up! I was asleep! It worked!"
The Aoide blinked, then smiled slowly. "'M... 'm happy for you... m'lord..." His eyes drifted closed again, and a moment later a long snore issued from Toki's slumbering form.
Tian Yue shook his head and settled back into his 'bed' with a huge smile on his face. He'd let Toki sleep a while longer.
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Posted: Sat Jan 14, 2012 5:50 pm
Shift in the Night
It was night.
Somehow that seemed the best time, the most appropriate; wearing scales for the occasion seemed proper as well. Not that anyone other than Tian Yue and his Aoide knew that there was anything special about that night, as they wheeled over the Pantheon, wings and dragon coils catching the wild thermals that rose from the lava pools.
This is going to change. This is all going to change, and I am going to be the one who will change it. The thought still didn't seem entirely real; the idea that he could hold that kind of power.
The power of a god...
Toki flapped past him, the Aoide's purple wings flapping against the weird half-light of the bruised night sky. "My Lord! Are you prepared?"
Tian Yue turned, his eyes bright; he snapped his tail with a crack like that of a whip. "I think I am."
"Then, by all means..." The Aoide somehow executed a mid-air bow and retreated to what he deemed a respectful distance.
Tian Yue took a deep breath. It had taken several weeks of hard practice to get to this moment. Tien Lung. Worldshield.
Me.
He stopped slowly in mid-air, and did not allow the thermals to move him one inch from his place in the sky. Quietly, he closed his eyes and concentrated. The shield, instantly obedient, sprang into being, scales of his second skin bright to his inner sight. He stretched them out like breathing to encompass the area they had decided on, and then stopped, holding the power there, allowing it to sink into the earth, to anchor, to become as immovable as his own coils they are my own coils.
And then, quietly, it was done. There was no fanfare, no cheering, no notice - but there would be. There would be, as the land within his coils began to slowly recover from what Destruction's power had done to it.
The Dragon King opened his eyes and roared. The sound echoed against the buildings, scaring up a small flurry of bats and night birds. Their existence was a flutter against his outermost thoughts, but soft and quiet, easy to ignore, as was the brighter glow of mortal life.
So fragile. But I must protect it. Live, damn you all. Live and prosper, breathe...
No fanfare. No ticker-tape parade. Nothing but the soft tack of his own claws on the roof tiles and the quiet hush of Toki's wings, the Aoide silent for once (though Tian Yue was fairly sure Toki was crying).
And yet... it was good.
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Posted: Sat Jan 14, 2012 5:51 pm
Carry The StarsSosiqui He came, at last, in scales.
Tian Yue had thought a great deal about how best to approach Universe, and had decided at last that simplicity was the best thing - to come not dressed in pretty words and pretty things, offering pretty toys. Such things were petty, just more things to hide behind, to shadow himself underneath. No. He would bring no such things to Lucius' door.
Instead he came alone, dragon-shaped, his heart beating hard in his chest; one beat for nervousness, two for excitement. No matter what happened in the end, he was eager to see Universe again. His offer would be simple; it would be accepted, or not, and they would proceed from there.
Simple.
Drawing a deep breath, the dragon raised one awkwardly curled claw to Lucius' door and knocked, his ears tilted forward to catch even a hint of a reply from within. Ivynian  "It is open. " Lucius called from the far-reaches of the entry room, at his customary alcove, part of his voice breaking at the end. He knelt there on one knee, the other up and serving as a prop for his left hand. The right pushed knuckles against fingertips....he worked his digits along the bindings. The fabric of his skin hissed along the wires. It was like a childrens game, training beads along set wire-gauge paths. Or widening a piercing by tugging and pulling, turning the metal. Only he had to move the skin on the metal, not the other way around. And the skin that touched the wire didn't heal closed, used to the intrusion. Who would come now, and what could they possibly want? Light has been gone long, and medicine. Water missing. Gaia and Underworld have recently graced me. That doesn't leave a wide list of callers. He had gotten two fingers half opened, and paused, looking to the door. Sosiqui Tian Yue nodded once to himself, then carefully pushed open the door - thankfully, it wasn't too difficult to manage with claws. "Lucius?" He padded into the room carefully, doing his best to not knock anything over with his coils. "Are you well- oh," he stopped with a quick intake of breath. "Your eye..."
What had happened there? For a moment there was a surge of anger. If someone had wounded him, he would drive his own claw through their eye, and see how they liked it. Hadn't Universe had enough?! Ivynian "My-...oh. " He stood from the far alcove, and started out, along the thin paths near the water to the front of the entry. There was a dragon on his doorstep. A familiar one. "Tien Lung. I did not expect your visit....this is...a first for this form." I have not seen it in along time. But I remember it now. It was not steps beside my own, not always booted feet, but claws. "It was a sacrifice to return to power an artifact brought to be by underworld. " Sosiqui "Ah - I see..." Tian Yue's hackles slowly lowered, and he let the anger drain away. "I am sorry I did not come sooner. I had much to relearn. The skin between this place and where mortals walk had to be reformed and reforged. It is only a pittance, but at least now it is there... but that's not why I came." He tilted his head at Lucius and smiled, draconic, toothy. Hopeful. Audacious, dragon. But wasn't courting Universe in the first place an audacious act?
"Would you join me, Universe? I would like to fly with you, if you would do me that honor.." The dragon paced over closer, his gaze traveling over the hole in one wing. "I would bear you on my back." Ivynian "Flying?" And be carried up to the sky? What a random and sudden request. The colours of the dragons scales reflected the muted, shadow-mottled light of his wings. He watched them, unmoving while the other stood waiting for an answer. "It is a strange request.....we have not seen each other in long spans. Not since you brought back....this gift of fore-time."A gift of lovers. LOVERS!Lucius' eyes narrowed. "You owe me an explanation before I agree to anything, Worldshield. ""Morgan. Host to the Commedia. What lovers you take to your bed would normally be no business of mine, except when they come mortal to my door and make demands and lectures of my time. "
'Besides, companionship might do you both some good.' Her words...
"She said you spoke well of me? I'm curious about -what- exactly. Or why a mortal would come demanding I see after you. "The anger burned back, the brand hot against the patch that covered it. He was grateful, honestly grateful and terrified of the memories that bucked and strained in his mind. But shared? Like he was flayed open without knowing it, displayed a beast before some unworthy woman's eyes. Some woman who thought she could just talk to gods and demand blessings on first speech. Mortals did not demand of other mortals, first acquaintances, what she had asked of a god. And what did you tell her of me? What memory did you divulge that I myself may not know? First telling to a mortal whore who shared your mortal bed. -Tian Yue- she named you. You have named yourself. But here you come to my door as well, wearing a guise like a memory, the love I had forgotten, had pined for, have suffered to find. Why dare you come to me now? Like this? As we are both like this?
Things that should have been said to me first, or not at all? Or was just a name shared, and in her boldness she thought to seek him out? As though she could fathom the difference that could exist between the names of Shaiming and Tian Yue. The pouring was so fast, a sudden shower of comets in clear sky, a supernova triggered. Lucius gasped, stepping back, and brought a had up to cover the patch, the brand. Sosiqui Tian Yue reared back, startled at Universe's sudden vehemence, then took a step forward as the other god gasped and moved. "Lucius - wait, Morgan came here?" He frowned. "She did not tell me anything of that... I did not send her."
Demands? Lectures? The dragon groaned inwardly; if he'd been in human form, he would have been tempted to facepalm. "I don't know what she asked of you. I told her that Tien Lung and Universe matched steps with each other in times past, and that..." He hesitated. "If the memories still left to me had their way..."
His voice trailed off. "I do not assume. This life is new and strange again and again. But I told her about stars and scales. And that you were different. You always have been," he said, hearing the distant echo of those same words. He had told them to Lucius when he had given Universe the choker the second time. Ivynian He moaned, curling his shoulders down, his wings about him. Everything inside was molten again, like when he had first changed. Like the days before he had Sinned. It felt like too much had been poured in to some invisible glass, the glass heated, distorted and stretched.....but held. His voice came hoarse, "If by different you mean mad, then you would be correct I think." He paused, just panting. What a fast trigger! But now....time and yes, their efforts....Gaia and Tien Lung... Short visits with good, hurtful and strong words. That he had listened. He had memory now, and the blessing...a one step remove. He could watch and feel the strangeness without being wholly a part. "What is wrong with me, Tien Lung....."
"I could.. strike you now.......that come before me in guise of my lover...shadow of my heart . Where were you years ago? Months ago? Why are you Tian Yue...bedded by mortal flesh first? " He made a guttural noise, half infected by a dry heave. His insides pushed to outside. The brand was bleeding, sending glowing veins of rune along the insides of the frame of skin around the stars. "No...." It was a whisper, a command obvious at himself. He breathed deep.
Let it go. Let it go, Lucius. This can be sorted, will be sorted. It must have time. What choice had he in order of rebirth? I let myself fall in love with Creation, he is not to blame for that. It is so close here. Walls, skin, they are the same.Sosiqui He reared again, then moved to curl - he could not separate his shield, not now, to give Lucius some succor from Destruction's influence, but he twined his long body in a crescent arc towards Universe. Not tightly, not touching, allowing him space, but at one remove encircling the cocoon of Lucius' wings with his scales. "I am sorry - so sorry - that I was not there," he whispered, his voice rough. "The guilt was crushing. But... wrong..."
Tian Yue tossed his head. "There is nothing wrong with you. I remember... I remember how it was back then." His voice dropped still further, barely audible as it slid under Universe's feathers to his ears. "I asked so much of you. It was hard, so hard, to teach; for you to learn. How to pour all the majesty and glory of the heavens, the heat and light of every star, the pull of every black hole and dust of every nebula - how to distill the vast spaces between every world into a single letter? And yet..."
He drew a long breath. "And yet... you granted this foolish dragon's wish. And now we are all chained to such tightly mortal coils. The stars shake under your skin." Ivynian It sounded right.....practically thoughts of his own from some old argument. One letter. "I"It was so easy to say. Think. It had been hard? Yes, he remembered that. Those arguments. There was a fading of the roil. Recognition.....the dragon had not guessed, had not hesitated. He knew and spoke with perfect clarity exactly what was wrong. "You know."Sosiqui "It is not something I have hidden from you," Tian Yue said, quietly. "It comes in fits and starts to me as well. What was asked. What was given. I was not sure until just now. Novas under the wires. Time eroded many things, but it could not take that, it seems, only obscure it under a haze. I found an old chronicle not long ago while researching another matter. There was enough there to push the mist away." He was dizzy; he felt as though half of him was coiling through the past, still matching scales to bright wings in some distant cosmos, even as he stood here shrunken around bound Universe.
He lifted his head up, sought Lucius' eyes - no, eye, now - with his own. "I do not know how I can help you, but I will try to my utmost. I cannot chew or claw through Destruction's judgment, but what I can... what I can, is yours." Ivynian Such promises. Then they were both broken in half, on half to remember what was and the other to pull towards what had become. "I. Thank you."What coils may look similar were not. It was not ageless sparkle and stolid strength, tomes upon countless tome of mortal knowledge that stared back at him from behind the slitted eyes. It was the eagerness of a young boy that had met with that. Shaiming was gone. That shadow of dreams and blood-boiling memories, the phantom that turned him mad was dead. Ceased to be. Shaiming would never clutch the stars again. Rebirth had not been so, whatever the reason, the choice. And he had not known the name of his dream until the choker had been placed around his neck. As he grew more whole he learned only more that was lost or wrong in him, around him. His knuckles slowly dropped from their press against the brand. "These walls are too tight. If you would still bear me....I would fly."Sosiqui "I will," Tian Yue said, simply. In one quick glance he took in the room - ah, large windows, good- and paced over to shove the nearest set open, a slash and push with his claws. Awkward, perhaps, not as fine-tuned as human hands, but good enough for this. The air outside was somewhat more sweet as it passed through his shield before arriving at the Pantheon now; he quickly checked it, shoring it up here and there where needed.
Then he turned and settled himself before Lucius, crouching low to allow the god an easy mount. "You may hold my mane as best you can, if you like. I will not let you fall. We will go high, if you can...?" He wasn't sure, he realized, if Lucius in his bound state would be vulnerable to lack of air, to vacuum. He wanted the stars, wanted them now, wanted to carry Lucius into his element again and set the novas free. If he could chew through the wires-
But I can't, and I will not disobey my Lord's orders. Yet still there was an irrational urge to set teeth to metal and at least try. Ivynian  He laughed, and uneasy sound, phantoms of sadness glowing behind the smile on his lips. "What hands cannot hold, legs will grasp sure enough."How they had joined in days past. "Breath ceased long ago in this body, as its organs became mine. That I do is a left over habit. Even bound, I am Universe....I am reborn a god. I will not be harmed by space."Sosiqui Tian Yue nodded, then waited. The touch of Universe's skin on his scales made him tremble, just a little bit. Would Lucius have noticed? He wasn't sure. He shifted a bit, to try and cover it until the moment passed.
When he felt Universe was well seated, he nodded to himself. "Then we fly, high and fast and far-" The sky outside the window, bruised as it was, was calling to him doubly now that Lucius was with him, and he leapt outside with a pleased hiss. There was a brief wash of strangeness as he flashed through the area protected by his shield, and then they were above it and moving higher, Tian Yue arrowing upwards as fast as he could without throwing Lucius off-balance or making him in danger of falling.
The stars were waiting. Calling. He was certain they would know their Source even through the binding. Ivynian There were shivers along the muscles beneath the scales between his legs. Was if fear, or memory? It would be too bittersweet if it were both. What point was served for the ghost of his lover to imbue this other with any memories of them? He strained the muscles of his left hand, the fingers sliding out along the wires by millimeters, but the digits trembled annoyingly. Impossibly. The fabric of his muscles was too long atrophied. He kept his wings pinned tight against himself to reduce the drag of the wind as the dragon bolted skyward. His gut had dropped out, cancerous, as they bounded beyond the barrier into the dying sky. Their exact location, as they flitted star-bound, dizzied as a point in his awareness. A feeling of passage, thinner then spider-thread, the path they took along some inner rib. But it was familiar. Mane tickled along his thighs and coils shifting madly between, the scent of air and nothing while the barely audible hiss on the edges of breath through fanged muzzle filtered to him. His voice came soft and low from his throat before he had presence of will to check it, ”How much do you remember, Tian Yue?” Sosiqui Tian Yue slowed in his flight when he heard Lucius begin to speak, enough so that he could hear the other's words. "I remember... bits and pieces. Scattered moments. The Fading and the long coil within the gem has clouded a great deal of the details. Things that happened over and over... those I remember. Endless meetings of Court." The dragon snorted and whipped his tail, pushing them higher for a moment before he stilled again. "Coiling around the worlds; repelling invaders who would seek the Throne. My brothers, my sister. A few of the little gods." Harmodius' name went unspoken; it was obvious. "And your wings, flicking bright here and there. Emotion... comes heavy with that," he admitted. "There are some moments with... with you, in the past, that are bright and sharp in my mind. Detailed. But most of it is soft and old and dim."
They were almost at the edge of air, now. "I remember this," he said, finally.
When I am with you, when I am with Lord Harmodius - I grow more and more Tien Lung, more of Shaiming and less of Crispin, he thought, but could not say. The memories were both deeply his and vaguely foreign at the same time. A cold and strange paradox.
Perhaps he had been holding on to Crispin just for Morgan's sake. Ivynian "I could have joined it, in another life." He wanted to. To cease bodily existence and just be, spread to the vastness that opened back from them to unseen, unknown ends. Where fingers no longer mattered. There were no arms that could reach across it to gather it, contain it, mold it or alter it.....naught but its own will sufficed to the task. ”It” was separated from “I” or “me”. It was in him, and he was it, but the semantics game got fuzzy beyond that. His wings lifted instinctively, brighter for the relativity of the expansive dark. Except the bandaged wound. He frowned at it when a tail of white gauze caught in his peripheral vision. ”More returns to me with the passing of hours. It never stops, Tian Yue. It was all caught up in an hourglass, held and kept from me….but claws and fists have been kind and unkind to that clouded glass. It started with cracks, when the first grains of sand leaked out behind my eyes. I remembered shadows…loss. I sought for what I did not know. But now…..where there was dearth there is flood. It pours out in waves, lifted by sandstorm winds, and my footsteps are lost in it, the footsteps of now. Until it ebbs. And then I am me again, this again.“Beyond that, he didn’t know what to say. Had the dragon met Tien? How long did the girl, Morgan, have? Would they continue their relationship? It felt callous to ask, and pointless. How much did it matter? It all rested on a single question. "Why did you come to me, today? There are many you could ask you join you in flight." Sosiqui The dragon stilled entirely this time, his mane wisping lightly in what little wind there was; it was beginning to go over to auroras, broken as they were, fizzing not too far above them now. "Because... because of those memories. I know... I am not precisely Shaiming." He spoke the name quietly. "I am not precisely the boy Crispin, either. I am both at once, and neither. My definition of 'I' is a difficult one as well, though not in the same way. But I cannot possibly be Tien Lung without honoring the memories I hold... whatever happens because of that. I could not possibly be the Worldshield without wanting to draw near to Universe..."
He paused, then shook his head, his mane rippling with the movement. "Maybe I am too forward. Maybe I am not enough Tien Lung of old for this." For you. "But I can't not care about... about you. I wanted to give you something, even if it ends up being only a flight and kind words..."
Tian Yue ran out of words, then. There weren't any more. The strangeness of his feelings seemed glaring, huge... yet at the same time, perfectly normal. Definitions. They really are... very, very hard. He flicked his tail again instead, and lifted them higher once more. Ivynian  ”For that much, at least, I do thank you.” It felt like an age since he had last been to the stars. Perhaps it had, time passed strange in the darks of present-exile. The day of the betrayal was the last day he had flown. ”Forthrightness on the matter does not trouble me. You usually....he....” the pronoun was be difficult. The dragon fully admitted to being both and neither. ”Shall it be you or he, Tian Yue?" ”The situation is not dissimilar. Often once a decision had been reached in the mind of the Worldshield the straightest, most direct path was chosen." Though subterfuge was a rare strategy.....though not foreign......the LadyMother told me of spies hiding in adjacent rooms later. ”It seems like it would be cruel to base the whole prospects of our history on a single meeting. But for now....forwardness aside....may I beg you that we grow as friends first? ” A revolt inside wanted to cling and press against the dragon, to shudder and not let go until breathless exhaustion overtook them both. There was anger as well, but when wasn't there? And that mad heart, pierced through pierce of another gentler, more shining then all. ”I have loved, in this new life. The blame is not in how much of the past lives in you, but in me.” Which is normal. ”A heart already thought owned and cindered is hard to give to another.” I had thought to myself, promised myself, I would be free. I would not love again....it is just another binding. More heavy chains to bear me down and crush stars into flickering diamonds that others can hold. I remember the want for love, can feel it still. But broken bleeds for release, and bondage to this form, to all form and name, is deeper the fear. More for returned memory.
I want to be free, Tian Yue. You take me to the stars, carry me...but you did bind me, would bind me, in your own way again.
'Lucius' unraveled into scratches random on stone and then worn away by those pouring sands. I would be Universe again. ”If it is to be....if you truly wish it as you are, Shaiming-Crispin-TianYue, then time will pass quickly....and it will happen. I do not demand that you court me, only give it time. We both have the concerns of this life to consider, before wholly rushing to repaint the shadows of the old.” Sosiqui Tian Yue bobbed his head. "If it is 'you' or 'he'... if I knew the answer, I would give it to you," he said, with a sigh. "When I was newly made, it was 'he'; it grows closer to 'you' every day. Now, up here, perhaps it is indeed 'you'."
He stilled then again as Lucius continued speaking, and when Universe was done a tremble ran down his coils - but this time, the quiver was born from joy. "I would be delighted, honored, to name you as friend - and, as you say, if there is to be... to be more again, as there was before, then it will be! Then perhaps I shall beg Qian Lung for another scale, and be scolded for it again."
Tension drained away, and he laughed at himself. "I am glad, very glad, to be your friend." His tailflick was playful this time, delighted, and they rose upward once again. "We shall see. But now, shall we break away from this place and go?" The dragon tilted his muzzle up to the stars. Ivynian ”Let it all break away....” Sosiqui Without another word, the dragon cracked his tail whiplike against what little thin air remained, and flew. The curve of the world fell away below them and soon the arching edge of the stratosphere was visible in sharp relief to space's void. The cosmos unobscured by atmosphere were beautiful and terrible all at once.
"Where?" Tian Yue hissed as he twined through the shiver of a pale aurora. "Where shall we go?" Moons, stars, galaxies, nebulae all laid out before them. They were broken, cracked, eroded, but still there, even if there were gaps. He trusted in their own shared power, the Celestial, to carry his words to the other's ears. Ivynian He was safe, immune unless by choice, to his own elements. He wondered how immune the dragon’s still half-mortal frame was. The blood of gods may protect him from drowning in vacuum, depressurizing, or freezing, but the starlit deity couldn’t help but wonder if gravity wouldn’t pose him difficulty. He was still….so small, for a dragon. If they chose to go near something with too much pull, would he be able to take flight again? Perhaps it was a foolish idea; he had gotten them out from the ball that the Pantheon was situated on. Planets had strong gravity. How much strength was re-gathered in the dragon? How close was he to being….more truly whatever and whoever he was? It was a question he hadn’t often cared about. How fast or slow the evolution and rebirth of the gods was moot. It was inevitable, so why worry over the length of time? But now, here was mad heart’s beating. A dream for each sleek scale. He wanted quiet, soft white. Something to dull the edge of the knife-black that twisted in his gut and braised his skin.
“A moon. Any moon.”
We wore them as pearls, collected them as marbles, picnicked on them, threw their sparkling dust up and made comets to chase. Sosiqui "It will have to be the closest; I am not fast enough for any other yet," Tian Yue replied. "I rode a starship to reach the Gallery." He turned his course towards the moon of Gaia, its surface perhaps more pitted and pocked than it had been before Destruction's ascendancy, but still there. Still whole, not dust yet. His movement was different up here where gravity had no sway, a little more awkward for lack of practice, but he was still Tien Lung, the Celestial.
It was not too far, not when he stretched himself to his utmost; perhaps it was days on the ground below. He was not sure. It was hard to tell time here - time barely applied, especially now. Only a crescent of the moon was lit by the sun, the rest lay in cool shadow. There was a moment's adjustment as gravity tugged on him, a bit of awkwardness, and then he was sculling his claws through the dust. "Shall we stop here?" Ivynian Lucius stood up from the dragon's back without a word, stepping onto the pale dusts like a mirage-haunted desert fugitive. There was no wind here. No sound. His tail and sword-skirt drug whorls in the grey. "Has it been so long..." His voice carried, unaffected by the vacuum. He was the space between. "Not since the branding.....Tian Yue. " The name itself was uttered as a thank you as Lucius turned to look at the dragon. Sosiqui Tian Yue let himself settle fully onto the surface, part of him wondering at it all - here he was, on a moon! It was both astonishing and commonplace all at once. But Lucius' words drew his attention, and the dragon took a long, startled look. Lucius' skin always mirrored the stars - he knew this, had known it - but it was even more rich and surprising now that he stood here in his element. The difference between sky and skin seemed blurred, except for the cold tug of the wires that bound him.
Without those, I think he would be gone, aether, and leave me here snapping at comets. He wasn't sure if that would be good or bad. "It is where you belong," he said, quietly. "I am only sorry I had not thought of it sooner." Ivynian "I had not thought of it, either.....I have not thought of flight. I have had no reason to. " He looked up, starlight running swift and clear down one cheek. "We've changed so, running from thought to thought and tragedy and tragedy. Changed further then mirror faces into shadows and mock puppets of what we should have been. He meant for us to learn, to change for the better, not to just forget and become...twisted. " "It is so easy, Tian Yue. Too easy. " He breathed shallow, a long inhale that rattled his ribs. "Growing thin, but seeing ourselves fat. Focussed inward, and forgetting the stars. I was dreams, guidance." "Hope. " There was a long pause and he looked at the dragon again, But now, He is forgetting. I remember now, my place and myself. I will speak with Him again and do what I can. Sosiqui What could he say to that? The first responses that came to mind all sounded pithy, shallow, pointless. "You're not the only one," he said, finally, pacing to stand near Universe. "If I were to fault you for that I would have to mark myself guilty as well."
He paused, then smiled. "I met the Wind a month, two months ago. She smacked me roundly with her wing and gave me audacious advice. But she showed me that there was a way out of the trap you speak of, if only I would go to it. And she mentioned you as well. Caring for you, sister to brother."
Tian Yue tilted his head up and looked at the stars; whether they were in the sky or Lucius' own skin, he could not say. "If I can help you, I will. I am sure Beryl would. And Gianfar." Ivynian "Beryl.....we are no relation, spirit or blood. "
I may be mad, and may have been moreso then....but....that...those words and how it happened
"I would prefer if you would not say that again. Maybe in time, she and I will speak again, but not now."He could feel the electricity ridge his spine. 'Yes I do remember the gift, payment for what was simply bought. Payment for what would have been my victory. A gift from a sister. Dear to me, traitorous one, give me no mercy now where there was none when at last it mattered. '
'Did you not betray us as well? The others? Your other siblings in rebirth?'
'Treachery? You would speak of what you do not know. What is treachery? A violation of allegiance toward one's sovereign....and none of you are sovereign to me. I owe none of you, no pittance nor wealth, nor love. All of you stood against without understanding, as I had guessed at from the start. Only Love herself was by my side, and so far as it be, she is the only welcome there. ' Help? Gianfar and Beryl and Tian Yue.....did anyone beyond himself even suspect that there was error, disease and atrophy within the Crown? The dragon's wording was like that which was heard at the end of celluloid imaginings. Touching. "I must face the Crown again. " Sosiqui Tian Yue let Beryl's mention pass; he did not know what had come between Universe and Wind. That was their own affair. But his tail lashed up a plume of moon-dust at the mention of the Crown. "My Lord is wild. Distant worlds are falling to him in fire. When I walked with Him last, I saw such a death with my own eyes. He asked me to call the Dragon Kings together."
The bindings remain lost, the mirrors are gone, the circle of pillars stand half toppled in disarray.
Tian Yue tossed his head. "The Dragons will be needed, he said. I do not know his purpose, but there was a strange fire in his eyes. All I know is that there are not infinite worlds for His maw, and that my shield strains against His power." Ivynian "I thought to myself, why does he not stop? "
"Agree or not with his methods, the mortals are looking for or angry with the gods. It means they have been forced to recognize our existence. But he should have withdrawn long ago. Creation should have started to appear again. It has been long enough with enough recognition that he should have healed some from my treachery.""I thought of how we are all bound by the regard of mortals. How nigh all immortal and mortal alike hate Destruction. Think it evil. Is it truly so, or have we made him so?" "So I will go and speak with him. Others are looking for Aristogeiton to achieve balance again.....but there must be support now. Someone must find out and help the Crown....whatever it is that plagues him." Sosiqui "Indeed... though I have not seen Creation's rule in this life, it seems that if that aspect were as wild, the world would have been brought low by new life springing cancerously from every pore, wild beyond control." Tian Yue's tail lashed again at the thought. "Everything I remember and what I have heard from those who were born then tells me it was not so."
He paused. "I would stand with you before the throne, if you like. I am not silver-tongued as Mang, but I may be able to help. I do not want to see the Crown fail." A shudder ran down his spine. "No. I will not see the Crown fail." The dragon growled into the vacuum. Ivynian "I will not ask it of you, but you are welcome, if you wish. " He crossed his arms in front of himself, shifting his weight to one leg as he looked out across the pocked, pale surface. Fail? What did it mean for Harmodius to fail? He was not bound by one of the gems, and...he did not know if the Eldest could die. If he did? The rest of them had died and everything had moved on, continued wild and lesser, but continued. Either way, he could not have spent so much time to bring them all back, if he foresaw the End. It would be pointless. Now was not time. Sosiqui Tian Yue nodded, slowly. "If the Crown does not grant me other duties, I would be glad to stand with you, if only to see your concerns addressed." He wondered about the others; gods flown far to aid the Twin Crown. Aristogeiton. That was an old, old name.
The silence filled his ears, but he found no need to break it again. There was only stars, and light, and darkness.
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Posted: Sat Jan 14, 2012 5:52 pm
Coming Down to Earth
It felt strange to descend from the high place, to drop down into such a limited and finite space as his own chamber. For a moment, Tian Yue felt claustrophobic as he curled through the skylight and landed on the floor of his bedroom. The walls were so tight, so limiting. The painted stars on the black ceiling seemed like rankest mockery.
He wasn't entirely sure how long he had been gone. He had lost track of time entirely, or forgotten that it meant anything; it was largely immaterial among the stars, where a day was such a short amount of time that it was laughable, ridiculous like calculating one's life in nanoseconds. Years, centuries, millennia - only vaguely applicable, even the latter just barely relevant.
He had been among the stars, been with the stars, and to return and find walls and time and all of it unchanged, waiting to clap back around his coils, was somehow utterly aggravating.
When he turned, his tail whacked the nightstand and made the lamp wobble alarmingly. With a sound that was half-sigh, half-snarl, he shifted to human shape and nearly fell over with the shock of it. Tiny, fleshy, weak-
No. That is the tired dragon talking. I am Tien Lung in any form I take. If I was a rat or a cockroach, I would still be what I am. The feelings of squirmy discomfort vanished quickly, and he moved to sit on the edge of the bed. The glory of the infinite was slowly draining away, replaced by exhaustion and a press of thoughts that Universe's presence had driven away. He swatted them, mentally; worries about Zhijian's quest, Ashoka, Tien, Lord Harmodius - all of it could wait until after he slept.
No wonder Tien Lung has loved Universe.
Tian Yue shifted the bedclothes and pulled them over himself, nestling into the soft mattress, waiting for his thoughts to still enough to allow sleep. Loved. Was it not love, present tense? He was not sure. Oh, love of a kind, for certain - a deep caring, a desire to see the best for Lucius, fierce protectiveness. But more than that?
He could not deny that Lucius' words had made his heart skip a beat. If it is to be....if you truly wish it as you are, Shaiming-Crispin-TianYue, then time will pass quickly....and it will happen.
It will happen...
An awkward rediscovery.
And yet, he thought that he had given Universe a gift. Tien Lung and Universe, moving among the stars again - how long had it been since that had happened? And his protection had remained around the Pantheon far below, through everything - that, he thought with smug pride, was another very good thing.
He was too tired to sort it all out now.
It's a good thing we're immortal. We just might need that much time to understand. Both of us. And yet...
Tian Yue smiled quietly to himself, and curled to sleep.
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Posted: Sat Jan 14, 2012 5:54 pm
Interlude: Toki
Toki had known the instant his Lord returned, of course - what manner of Aoide would he be, otherwise? He had seen his Lord take flight and leave the Pantheon with Lord Universe on his back, and had shortly gone through nearly a whole box of tissues afterwards. He was eager to speak with his Lord, to find out what had transpired, but he forced himself to remain discreet, to wait until being called, if a call came.
After a few minutes of movement from within his Lord's room, silence fell, and the Aoide at last dared to sidle up to the curtain and listen. Even breathing met his ears, and he smiled. Asleep, then.
Toki crept back to his room after a moment's listening. He hadn't heard any bedding being torn to shreds, so it seemed whatever had happened between his Lord and Lord Universe had gone well. So it was enough, then - every day, he saw more and more of his Lord Shaiming reflected in Lord Tian Yue's scales, the confidence and self-assurance of his ancient Lord. They were truly becoming one, now. He had seen glimpses before, but they had been inconsistent; the see-sawing of a mind not yet fully certain of its form.
But now...
I do not think these chambers will be adequate for very much longer, Toki pondered, plopping down to sit on his bed. The protection has been renewed, the stars have seen the return... I can see it, feel it. His hand strayed to open his nightstand's drawer, and he lightly ran one finger over the now soft and well-read surface of Shaiming's last letter to him.
He was not wrong...
Then Toki, too, smiled and lay back on his bed, flaring his wings lightly out to the sides. He wasn't sure what manner of temple would best please his Lord, but that could come in due time. Something stunning, something beautiful, something different... until the Realms were once again restored, and the Palaces rebuilt.
He hadn't thought about that in eons. Why he had been forgiven, why he had survived when even the immortal realms had not - Toki, mere head clerk of Tien Lung, not warrior, nor advisor, nor holy priest Aoide. Simply a clerk, and yet when the trial of time and the Fading had fallen over the court, somehow he had been the only one left on the other side. Wobbly and more than a little broken, but alive.
He had not served Tien Lung this long without having some idea of what his Lord would like, but Tian Yue threw all kinds of delightful uncertainty into his ideas. It was... exciting. Fresh. New.
No. He was not wrong in the least.
With that happy thought in mind, Toki closed his eyes and allowed himself to sleep, a smile playing across his face before he, too, slipped into slumber.
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Posted: Sat Jan 14, 2012 5:54 pm
Home AgainMeepfur Zhijian padded down the hallway on two feet, as usual wearing nothing - well, next to nothing. Now that he was back home, he was wearing the jewelry Harmodius had gifted him again. He had his messenger bag as well, which was looking even sadder than usual after the weeks he'd spent dragging it with him through the snow. He'd emptied it for the most part, carefully removing most of the things he'd taken with him on his quest...he was glad to not have to worry about the potion bottles clanking around and into each other anymore. He was relatively sure they'd been made not to break, but there were some things you could never be too careful about.
Most of all, he was glad to be home, inside and warm - and soon to see his brother again. He stopped at Tian Yue's door and knocked. Sosiqui Toki opened the door. His eyes widened immediately, and he bowed and scurried backwards. "My Lord! The Lord Fangbridle is here!"
A moment later Tian Yue was at the door, grinning broadly. "Zhijian! Welcome back! I assume your search for Sardis' thorn was successful?" Oh, he'd missed his brother. So much had happened in his absence. Morgan's... no, he couldn't call it death. Morgan. Resurrecting the Worldshield. Lucius.
He wondered, abruptly, if Zhijian had been back to his own chambers. If Ashoka had still been there. Meepfur Brother! As soon as Tian Yue replaced Toki at the door, Zhijian embraced his fellow dragon with a rumbling purr. He hadn't seen anyone at all during his time away, seeing as he'd spent the majority of it underwater, and he'd been lonely. Ying Long was deeply attached to his siblings, and considering that the only one actually around was Tien Lung, the affection ran even deeper. The only person he might have greeted more enthusiastically was their Lord.
Filled with contentment after weeks of being cold, wet, and alone, Zhijian took his time answering. "It was. And how go things for you?" Sosiqui Tian Yue laughed and tousled Zhiji's ears. "I'm glad. I knew it could not escape your notice for long."
He grew quiet, though, at his brother's question. "They go... strangely and all at once, it seems. The Trickster walks again; Morgan has become part of her." There was that familiar ache. "I have begun to protect what I can of the worlds, in my current state... and I have flown with Universe again." So simple and so complicated all at once. Meepfur Zhijian honestly had nothing to say on the matter of Morgan, though it wasn't a lack of care. He simply lacked the experience that would enable him to empathize with that sort of situation. He'd never been in love, at the very least that he could remember, and so the whole matter was quite foreign. So he just let that particular subject be.
"Then you are truly Worldshield again. That is good." He flicked his ears. Unfortunately, his own progress towards fulfilling his old purpose was going much more slowly. He still had his saddle and armor to find! "Have you spoken to our Lord at all?"
He was content to ignore the subject of Universe as well, if he could. What he'd done to Harmodius was could not be forgiven, in his eyes. Only an order to to do so would change that. Sosiqui "I have not, though I may soon - Lucius spoke of wishing to come before the Crown. I offered to join him. He..." Tian Yue paused, thinking. "I was not yet reborn when Lucius struck our Lord; if I had been, it may not have happened at all. Still, I think he has changed from what he was at that time. He expressed concerns about our Lord's well-being. If our Lord is indeed in need - that is why, I think, he charged me to bring the Kings together before him. And if Universe still holds treachery..."
Tian Yue shook his head. "I do not believe he does. But if I am wrong, then I will be there to place my coils between Lucius and our Lord." Meepfur Now, discussions were all well and good, but when you were a very large dragoncat who'd spent several weeks being very cold, very lonely, and subsequently very tired, discussion had its limits. He'd never been the most talkative of his siblings to begin with, anyway - and what was there to say? Tian Yue had a good handle on what he was doing; everything would be fine.
So, rather than waste any breath, he just nodded...and proceeded to drop to all fours, to twine lightly around the Worldshield, eyes half-closed in contentment. Mm, nice warm brother! Sosiqui Tian Yue laughed, then loosened his robes before shifting into his dragon shape, the fabric falling harmlessly aside as the flesh beneath it changed form. He coiled back around Zhijian as well, forming a nice comfortable pile of rumbling and contented dragon. "At least you won't be alone for long," he said, after a comfortably long moment of silence. "Have you, ah, been to your chambers yet?" Meepfur "I have," he answered, idly setting to grooming his fellow dragon. Even if he hadn't been to his chambers, it would have taken an awful lot to convince him to get up and go look right that moment - certainly more than news of the strange pard who'd moved in. He was much too comfortable. "I take it you've met Ashoka, then." Sosiqui Tian Yue made a face, wrinkling his muzzle in an unintentionally comical fashion. "I have. I heard her in there and hoped it was you... she was rather vexing in her harmless determination to stay there. I decided the matter was better left to you if she wouldn't heed my warnings." Meepfur "That's Ashoka for you," he rumbled, claw-combing Tian Yue's mane, "Vexing, but harmless. She takes some getting used to, her and her prattling." If he hadn't already known her, courtesy of Seppa, she probably would have annoyed the hell out of him...and then there might have been no more 'Shoka. Sosiqui Tian Yue leaned into the claw-skritch, without really thinking about it. "She said that you were going to go somewhere far away and that you would want me to come along." He paused. "To your... your place of dying. Do you have any idea what she meant, or was she incorrect?" Meepfur "Somewhere far away?" Place of dying? It was Zhijian's turn to wrinkle his nose, perplexed. "If I'm going somewhere, I don't know it yet. Or where." So far, he'd managed not to think about the Fading overmuch - it helped that he didn't really remember it.
"I haven't known her to be incorrect, though. Just confusing." Sosiqui "Well... surprise, then, I suppose - we appear to be going to wherever... wherever you Faded, I guess... at some point in the near future." Tian Yue shook his head, then turned thoughtful. "What business would we have in such a place?" Meepfur Zhijian actually chuckled a little, leaving off grooming for a moment to fuss with his own mane. "Perhaps that's where the rest of my things are. Of course, it would help if I knew where that was." Sosiqui "Perhaps... what more do you need? Bit, bridle... saddle... the saddle you need, yes? Is there any more? I confess myself ignorant to the full requirements of Ying Long," Tian Yue admitted, waving his tailtip back and forth. Meepfur "My saddle, and my armor." True, he could be ridden without them, and once that had been the way of things, but he couldn't not look for them. They were special, very special indeed. "I would very much like to find it all, to be ready for our Lord."
To be unready was nearly unimaginable. The last thing he wanted was to disappoint his Master. Sosiqui "Naturally," Tian Yue murmured, with a nod. "Hm. Perhaps some of it is where you... died, last. I don't remember anything of the kind... whether you went first, or..."
He could remember Qian Lung, the Black. Her fall, he remembered. The others? Nothing. His own? Nothing. Meepfur "Neither do I, unfortunately." He'd been perfectly happy about that before, but maybe it wasn't such a good thing. "That certainly complicates things, doesn't it?" He'd rather not have to go rummaging through Gianfar's library again. Sosiqui "Perhaps our Lord would know," Tian Yue mused, twirling a bit of Zhijian's mane between his own claws. "Surely he would... for something like that..." Meepfur "Perhaps he would," Zhijian arched his neck, purring, "Though I don't wish to trouble him with such a request...or call attention to the loss." He wasn't keen on risking his Lord's displeasure, especially given his current form. Sosiqui "True... how about Ashoka, then? She knew we'd have need to go to this place... maybe she or one of her kin knows where to go. Or I could research, I suppose..." Tian Yue rolled over, claws facing ceiling-ward for a moment. It was a silly pose, but oddly comfortable. Meepfur "Ashoka is amazingly difficult to get clear answers from, but I will try." It was almost tempting to lie on top of the other dragon, but that would have meant moving more than he felt like just now, so he just scooted to stay close. "But she is the only one; prophecy is a rare gift among pards." A seer, in this instance, would be useless. He didn't have anything Narasingh would be able to go on.
"Research? I'd be much obliged...it's not precisely one of my strong points." Sosiqui "I could see what I can find..." Tian Yue squirmed into an upright position, wincing as his tail knocked over a chair. "Oops. I've never seen anything in the records I have about that time, though." Not that he'd looked too hard. Every time he idly considered researching his own prior demise, something in him shied away - and there had always been more important things to give his attention to, anyway. "Much may well have been lost." Meepfur There were, it seemed, advantages to having no furniture - you were less likely to knock it over, for one thing. In the back of his mind, Zhijian made note to look for durable furniture, whenever he got around to it. "I don't remember much of what I read in the library," he confessed, "I was too busy trying not to fall asleep."
Or shred the books. "I don't have the patience for such searching." Sosiqui "Hm." Tian Yue grinned. "Perhaps that is why our Lord retains scholarly dragons, such as myself, in addition to riding beasts, such as yourself." He ducked away immediately, a look of impish mischief on his face, and his ears back like a cat about to pounce. Meepfur "Someone has to watch out for you while you've got your head in the clouds," Zhijian retorted, hauling himself up to leap at the Worldshield. Take that~! Oh yes, he'd definitely have to make sure to get very strong furniture. Very strong. Sosiqui Oh, Toki would not approve - but what did that matter? "And I appreciate it, believe me, but - oops, watch out for your own tail," Tian Yue said, cheerfully, diving to try and catch said tail in his jaws, his coils merrily tumbling the rest of the chairs away, a few of them landing with rather unpleasant cracking sounds. Meepfur Oh no! Tail caught, Zhijian stopped and stared back at his trapped appendage, his dismay rather comical in appearance. In an attempt to 'even the odds,' he quickly shed his necklace and carefully kicked it out of the way before changing form himself. With two dragons wrestling around the room, Tian Yue's chairs were going to be doomed. Sosiqui Oho! The stakes were raised... "Hmmm... this is a bit cramped, don't you think?" Tian Yue twined rapidly into the bedroom, ripping the hapless dividing curtain clear off the rod in the process, and shot up into the air, pushing the skylight open before whipping his coils up and into the sky above, grinning with delight. "Here is a better place for dragons to play," he roared down at the roof below, his tail waggling back and forth as he waited for his brother. Meepfur And there went the curtains! Toki was going to have some serious housecleaning to do. He barely gave it a thought, though, before dashing after Tian Yue - quite possibly doing some damage of his own on the way - and leaping after him into the sky with a sweep of his wings. Roaring back in answer, the furred dragon shot straight towards his brother. Sosiqui Higher, higher, higher! Tian Yue laughed and shot straight up into the air, catching a thermal from the lava pools in the Pantheon's courtyard. "I forgot how furry you are. A soft seat for our Lord?" he called to Zhijian, cheerfully. Meepfur "Wouldn't you like to know~?" Zhijian laughed and followed, higher and higher, snapping playfully at Tian Yue's trailing tail. As much as he loved his brothers, even they didn't get to hitch a ride. "You're so bald, you must get cold!" Sosiqui "Cold? Me?" Tian Yue scoffed, cheerfully. "Not even in space, my dear brother." He yelped, then, as Zhijian managed to catch his tail in his jaws, but it wasn't a serious chomp. He squirmed, and twisted around to bat at his brother's nose, though with his fists carefully closed. It wouldn't do to go too far in the heat of the moment, not even with Zhijian. Meepfur Bap! Startled by the swat to his sensitive nose, Zhijian released his hold on Tian Yue's tail. He hung stunned in the air for a moment, before shaking his head and lunging at the other dragon, to coil and wrestle with him. Though less of a mind to keep watch over his claws, he didn't seek to harm. Sosiqui In a moment there was a happy, tussling tangle of dragon coils - though that did make it a bit difficult to fly... but they were pretty high up now, weren't they?
Tian Yue grinned and let himself fall like a stone, catching Zhijian up in his plummet, wondering if his brother was strong enough to flap for them both. Probably not, but as long as he kept one eye on the ground, it wouldn't matter. Meepfur Whether he could have flapped for them both, there was no telling, because he didn't flap at all. Instead, intending to leave them both to the plummet his brother had started, he folded his wings and deliberately surrendered to the fall. Closing his eyes to the rushing air, he let the world fall away.
And remembered.
Warmth, comforting and stale all at once, and familiar hands soothing a hurt that would not go away. He'd held on for so long, tried so hard, but it seemed all the strength had gone out of him. There was no fight left in the Fangbridle, and nothing left to give - only the same love he'd always had for his Master, though he hadn't the strength to show it anymore. It was all he could do to breathe, to exist. The Fading, it seemed, had finally caught up with him.
Here at the heart of it all, in the arms of his Lord, he would surrender, as so many others already had. "I am sorry, my Lord, that I could not serve you longer," he sighed out, "I can only hope that...that I have served you well."
There was no answer, or else he didn't remember it; perhaps there had been, but he'd never heard it.
The memory flashed by in a half a moment, simply known rather than played out, and before he knew it, the earth was dangerously close. At some point in the fall he'd broken away from Tian Yue. Zhijian barely had time to snap open his wings and slow his fall. He still hit the ground and tumbled, but not so hard as to do himself injury. Sosiqui Tian Yue had tumbled away, zooming upwards with a laugh, fully expecting his brother to follow - so when he heard the thump and scree of something heavy hitting the ground, his heart dropped into his stomach, a sudden surge of fear catching hold of his mind. "Zhijian!" he roared, whipping around instantly, diving to the ground to skid to a rough stop near his brother. "Zhijian! Are you all right?!" Panicked, Tian Yue coiled himself loosely in a crescent around his brother, not touching him but obviously protective, his ears absolutely flat against his neck. Meepfur Hmm? Tian Yue's roar sounded surprisingly faint. How odd! As his brother coiled around him, Zhijian blinked owlishly at him. The dragon was dazed, and bound to be achey sometime soon, but uninjured. His appearance was rather comical, really - mussed, with bits and pieces of vegetation stuck in his mane, and a befuddled expression.
...what the hell had just happened? Zhijian coughed and shook his head to clear it, which he soon regretted. His brain really hadn't needed to be rattled around more. "I'm fine," he rasped. Self-consciously, he felt for his antlers to make sure they were still there. Thankfully, all four were intact. "I know where we need to go." Sosiqui "You... well, that's excellent, but... are you sure you're well?" Tian Yue nuzzled at Zhijian's cheek with concern. He hadn't actually seen his brother hit the ground, and it couldn't have been at terminal velocity or else - surely - even a god would have been knocked unconscious at the least, but... "That was a terribly bad time to remember," he said, with a sigh, and sidled up next to Zhijian to give him something to lean on. Meepfur "I've shaken loose a few braincells," he said dryly, "And I'll be very crabby tomorrow, but I don't think it's anything to worry about." Not for Tian Yue, at least - Ashoka would probably need to be careful.
He leaned gratefully against his brother and returned his nuzzle, suddenly very tired. "I don't suppose you know where the old Pantheon is?" Sosiqui "The old Pantheon..." Tian Yue thought, hard. Surely he would know. Surely - hadn't his job been to protect the divine plane, and that place above all else?
- will lay my coils around this place; my bones shall be the last shield-
He shook his head, hard, and whuffed. "It was... in the realm of the gods. But that place does not exist anymore; it has collapsed into the rest, pancaked on top of the mortal world..." He paused, then sighed. "I do not know where it may have come to rest." Meepfur Pancaked? A strange, but rather appropriate way of putting it. "That certainly complicates things, doesn't it?" Zhijian sighed. Why couldn't it ever be easy? Everything was always so complicated! Had it always been this way? He couldn't remember, and it was probably just as well. "Things really ought to be simple, just once." Sosiqui Tian Yue sighed. "Sadly, time has a way of complicating most things through sheer entropy... it eats away at the edges, and then we have to fill in the gaps." He shifted a bit. "Can you stand?" Meepfur "Of course," he answered without hesitation, moving slowly to do so. Of course he could stand! He was the Fangbridle, after all! A slightly wobbly Fangbridle, but a standing one nonetheless. Sosiqui "Well, good - how about flying?" Tian Yue asked, dryly, but he was losing his worried look. Still, that thump had scared him! Meepfur "Of course," he said again, flexing his wings experimentally and turning his head to have a look at them. "But I think I would rather walk." In other words, 'Probably not a good idea, but I'm not going to admit it.' Sosiqui "Of course - we spend so much time flying over everything, perhaps it would do us some good to walk over the place we rule, hm?" Tian Yue snorted teasingly, well aware of why Zhijian had made that choice, but that was as far as his jesting went. He was still concerned, and he glanced over his brother's wings, quickly. They didn't seem broken, not as far as he could tell, but he didn't have much experience with such things himself. Meepfur Zhijian was, for the most part, none the worse for wear. He certainly didn't look fabulous, what with the dirt and things he'd picked up in his rolling landing, but nothing seemed broken. He was likely to be a fearsome thing the next day when aches set in, but that was all the damage that had been done.
"If that's how you care to think of it," he rumbled, chuckling, and set to walking.
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Posted: Sat Jan 14, 2012 5:55 pm
Ancient Echoes
A bath had been precisely what Tian Yue needed to wash away the exertion of flight and play, the dust from walking back to the Pantheon on foot, and the aches and pains acquired during both endeavors. He had soaked blissfully as dragon before melting into human shape; the transformation made the water slosh strangely.
Thus relaxed again, he padded out to the living room, tightening the cord of the bathrobe around his waist. He winced a bit at the damage - Toki had done amazing things in the time they'd been gone, but it was still quite clear that either a hurricane or a pair of Dragon Kings at play had been through his chambers.
The Aoide stopped his cleaning and got up to bow when he entered, but Tian Yue waved one hand at him quickly. "No need for that. I'm sorry, Toki."
"No, no, my Lord - what are you doing?" Toki gave him a horrified look as he knelt down to pick splinters out of the rug. "I can manage!"
"I made the mess, I can help you pick it up. Don't argue with me," Tian Yue said, firmly, though he was smiling.
Toki held his pleading look for a moment longer, then sighed and gave up. "As you say, my Lord... are you quite well?"
"Apparently Zhijian and I will be going to the original Pantheon - wherever that is." Tian Yue pulled a surprisingly large shard of table out of the rug. "Do you know anything about that place? You said the realm of the gods had become one with the mortal realms..."
Toki bowed his head. "Yes, my Lord. The great City of All has collapsed, the walls encasing failed Yggdrasil fallen..." His wings drooped. "I survived in the ruins for a time, with some other Aoidei of other courts. That was long ago."
"After it fell?" Tian Yue stopped his work and focused on Toki.
"Yes. The collapse was cataclysmic. Pain and poison to us all." Toki swayed back and forth in the odd rocking motion that he adopted in times of particular stress, then stopped himself. "It fell in pieces. I don't know how many. But the piece I was on fell into a snowy and frozen world... nngh..." His whole face wrinkled with concentration. "I... don't remember what the locals called it..."
"Still, that's more knowledge than I had before." Tian Yue sat back on his heels. "Would you be able to recognize it if you saw it again? Like... a picture, a photograph, a map? The name? Anything?"
"Maybe..." Toki looked uncertain, and faintly distressed. "I am sorry!"
"Don't be! Like I said, this is more than I knew before. Snowy, huh. If we go to the library and search... there may be lists, atlases, things we can look through until you find something that looks right. None of the gods would know, of course... except maybe Destruction..." But Zhijian didn't want to ask him, not yet. He could understand that. If it became too troublesome, they might still have to go that route, but for now this seemed a workable plan. "Will you help me?"
"Oh, of course, my Lord!" Toki's face lit up. "My every desire is to serve you!"
"Er... yes, yes, of course. Tomorrow, then. For now..." Tian Yue looked around the room and made a face. They really had made a mess of things. "Let's get this looking more like the home of a Dragon King and less like the remains of a bar fight."
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Posted: Sat Jan 14, 2012 5:56 pm
At The EdgeZero Dream She'd managed an hour or so of sleep before she was off again. She did not know where to even start searching, but that did not stop her. She had saddled Aria and went, closely followed by both her aoidei, who even as the mood shifts of their mistress scared them, where not willing to let her go alone.
Words couldn't really explain how glad she was, honestly.
They had gotten quite far away from the pantheon when she had been finally convinced to stop for a bit, putting some distance in between her and her boys. She needed to brood.
She didn't go too far - only on the top of a small hill. She stood there, thinking. Still no hint of anything. Still lost. Cosine seemed to finally be gaining some strength, something she should be happy for, yet... it meant she would lose Lien soon. In fact, she couldn't help but wonder if it would be her she would see when she came back home... or the goddess. She shouldn't be hurt and angry, but the circumstances didn't help.
Her anger spiked again, and she did the only thing she knew could help dissipate it - she screamed, loud and clear and painful once more, giving herself no restrain now that she was enough not to bother anyone... or so she thought. Sosiqui Tian Yue flew high and fast, his path taking him in an arc around the town as he examined the edges of his shield. He was beginning to be able to see the delineation in its effects on the environment - it seemed to him that there was just a little more green inside, just a little less decay.
Just a little, but-
His thoughts were interrupted as he heard a scream, long and sharp, and his ears perked upright in alarm. What was that?! Was someone in danger, below? No, it hadn't come from the city... and it hadn't sounded mortal either. There was power in that cry.
The dragon turned and circled, trying to find the source of the noise, his tail lashing back and forth with worry. True, it wasn't his job to rescue every lost thing in the world, but if there was something in need and he had the ability to aid them, he simply couldn't look away and do nothing! Zero Dream She let herself tumble on her knees like a ragdoll, panting to recover the breath she still so badly needed. It hadn't helped much, but... it was better than snapping at everyone and everything, especially those who didn't deserve it.
The goddess did not even remotely feel like herself anymore, too caught up in her rage and pain to be. And the realization of that fact only seemed to upset her more, live a vicious spiral.
She saw something move in the sky above her, and she tilted up to look, still panting. Sosiqui There- He saw specks on a hillside, not too far away, and angled his flight towards them. Who... wait... is that...
Echo?
That made sense, a terrible kind of sense - of course Music's cries would carry power with them, but if she was screaming, like that...
The dragon sped up and dove downward, his coils cracking against the air like whips. "Echo!" he roared. For a moment he was afraid the figures with her were doing her harm, but then he realized they were her Aoidei and relaxed, just a bit. He skidded to land not too far from them, his claws scraping up long furrows in the dead grass. Zero Dream The tip of her ears seemed to perk slightly as the roar reached them. What, who...
Purple scales. Oh...
She worked herself on her feet once more, "Tian Yue..." She said, voice low and raw by the abuse it had just taken. He must have been flying nearby and she probably has disturbed his flight - she bit her lip lightly. Sosiqui "Are you all right?" Tian Yue gave her a look filled with deep concern. He could tell from the unexpected hoarseness of her voice that the scream had indeed been hers. "What brings Music to cry such painful notes into the sky?" he asked, quietly, pulling himself up to sit next to her, his tail curled around his feet but the twitches of its tip betraying his agitation. Zero Dream "I..." No, she wasn't allright. Yet she wasn't harmed like the dragon probably thought she was. "...am sorry for having bothering you.... I..."
She let herself sit on the dead grass once more, ignoring the sound it made as it was crushed. "....Loss, pain, and confusion. Among many others things." Sosiqui Tian Yue's ears went back flat against his neck. "I am sorry to hear it," he said, quietly. "Is there anything I can do to help you? To ease that... loss, that pain, that confusion?" He wanted to know what happened, but that wasn't his first concern. She was. Zero Dream "Have..." It was foolish, yes, as far as she knew, the two had probably never met, but... "...Have you seen Nergal when you where flying, anywhere ? He is the Underworld..." Surely that would be enough description, as it seemed most of them where pretty good at sensing power from each other. Sosiqui "Nergal?" Tian Yue tilted his head to one side, somewhat surprised - that hadn't been what he was expecting, at all. "No, I have not seen him for a good month or so... are you looking for him?" Zero Dream An hopeful look crossed her blue eyes, but was immediately crushed out, and the goddess hugged her knees in clear distress. "...He... Despaired a few days ago. Just like that. All we know is that someone used my name and pretended to be me to lure him somewhere. By the time I got there... He was gone" She choked a sob. "He's... I am so upset... worried... angry at this... I don't even feel like myself anymore, and all I can do is scream. And search."
From her reactions, it was easy as day to see that Nergal was much more than a friend. Sosiqui Tian Yue's eyes narrowed, and his claws dug into the earth. "If anyone would dare do such to a god..." he snarled. "They will get what is coming to them, by my own claws or someone else's."
He paused, took a long breath. "Show me where." The sentence was a command, an order of a Dragon King. Zero Dream The two aoidei all but tensed in surprise, but Echo did not seem to react much, beside once more working herself to her feet.
"It was the park.. We need to head back at the city for that." She, quite honestly, knew her place, her ranking. She was upset, and so was he now. She let out a sharp whistle, and a dark blue, horse-like creature came glopping. The aoidei, like wise, called their mounts, and the goddess mounted Aria, waiting until the dragon would be ready to take flight. Sosiqui Tian Yue nodded once, sharply, and leapt into the sky, pushing his speed to the utmost. Perhaps the steed wouldn't be able to keep up with him; he didn't care. There was a cold anger curled inside his chest, a dragon's anger, feral and dangerous.
Who would have tried to trick Nergal in such a way? And used Echo as a lure? Perhaps if Underworld had just been missing, there wouldn't be such concern - gods did what they wanted, after all, and going off for long periods was part of that - but to use Echo so... no, that stank of foul play.
The Dragon King soared onward, the cracks of his tail against the air clearly audible to anyone who cared to listen. Zero Dream It became quickly clear that the steeds could not keep up with the dragon, but really, that was quite alot to ask of the poor beasts. Aria was doing better than the mounts of the two aoidei, so she wouldn't be quite so far behind.
When Tian Yue would finally land, nothing would seem abnormal - beside the remains many candle scattered around the scene, which Echo hadn't had the heart to clean up yet. Sosiqui Tian Yue landed with a low snarl, his tail knocking over several of the benches in front of the amphitheater. Immediately he quieted himself and stood still, listening.
Nothing.
He pressed his nose to the ground and inhaled deeply. Yes, yes, yes- there was Underworld's scent, so odd and dry and cold, like corpses and mist, ozone-sharp at the edge. Yet there were other scents here as well, ones he didn't recognized. Spicy, dark and provocative, like the wisps of goddess-scent he caught from Nebula now. And brimstone, and ash of a different kind... Zero Dream The goddess wasn't too far behind, but she couldn't help but give a bit of a blank stare when she saw him with his nose on the ground, much akin a sniffing dog. But...
It just might work. Cerberus had lost the trail suddenly, but... Maybe Tian Yue had a finer nose ? Really, this was all getting even more overwhelming and odd. She dismounted and walked closer.
"Cerberus seemed to have sniffed his scent going in that direction." She pointed to the left. "He followed it very shortly then... just seemed to lose it..." Sosiqui Tian Yue nodded without saying anything, then turned and followed. Sure enough, the scent - no, scents - did indeed go where she'd indicated. Nergal's scent, yes, but also a confusing number of other scents, strange ones, ones he didn't recognize in the least. And all just as fresh as the others.
Whatever these other beings were ,they had been here at the same time as Nergal-
The dragon paused, then stepped back a bit. He'd lost the scent. No, there it was. Just two feet back... he paced forward. One step, two, three- gone!
"The scent just cuts off. Right here." Tian Yue scraped a line with one claw. "Past this point, it's just gone - Nergal's scent, and a confusion of many others. Scents I don't recognize. Many of them. They were all here at the same time he was, and then - bam. Nothing." The dragon's hackles rose, his mane puffing out a bit at his shoulders. Zero Dream Exactly the same, and exactly at the same spot. But this was more helpful, as the dragon could talk.
"We got pretty much the same thing, Ishum and I, with Cerberus. Exactly here... Many unknown scents, then..." Then she had been right. This was not one of Tien's tricks, as the beastmaster as hoped. Then something hit her. If she had been reborn then it meant...
No, probably not the best time to talk about that, not with both goddess and dragon upset. She let the empty jewelbox tumble in her hand, latching her hand tightly on it so she would not drill holes through her palm with her long nails. "I... I figured it might be a portal. For a scent to die off that squarely... It isn't natural." She didn't know much about scents, but she knew that much. Part of her hoped Cerberus had only been distracted, but... Her legs gave once more, and likewise she gave in, and let the tears fall.
"How the hell am I going to find him..." Sosiqui "A portal..." That sounded right; there weren't many other explanations that could work, after all. The dragon growled, then reared up and scratched at the air with his claws. Found nothing.
He stopped when he heard her start crying, and quickly moved to coil around her, supporting her. "He is a god, Echo... it is not that easy to defeat one of us, and I firmly believe if he was in true danger of his life, my Lord Harmodius would use His power. Why bring the gods to rebirth only to have them fall again? He has invested too much in us to allow such a thing to come to pass..." Zero Dream "Y---yes..." She managed in between sobs, letting herself be coiled around soft scales. She wasn't sure what she had somehow expected them to feel like, but that wasn't quite it. "I know that..." The mental image of Destruction, all claws and anger, wrecking havoc on the bastards who had dared- No, no. Better not go there. "...But I... It feels like someone wrenched half of my heart away from my chest." She buried her face against the scale, hoping the dripping water would not disturb the dragon too much.
There was also many things that could be done, that did not end in death - her mind rather easily thought up horrible scenarios one after the other... "It... it is all too planned. There isn't even a sign of a fight. They... knew exactly what they where against. ...I swear, if I ever get my hands on those bastards..."
There was now something dark in her voice. Dangerous. Sosiqui "Of course, of course. Strong wire can be used for so many things." His eyes glittered with a cold fire for a moment. Zero Dream "Yes..." The smooth movement of scales at least seemed to calm the goddess slightly, as she had stopped crying. Or had pain been replaced by anger so quickly ? She didn't know. Even Echo herself wasn't aware of her own mood swinging wildly anymore. She remembered, perhaps at an odd time, when Nergal had told her of Kaelin and his mark. Maybe this was how Water felt every day. Alien to even himself.
She didn't move - it felt too good here, too safe for her to distance herself by her own choosing. Sosiqui "It is not wrong to be angry," Tian Yue said, quietly, after a moment. The emotion ill-suited Music, at least the Echo he knew - but could not song express rage as well as joy, sorrow as well as delight? "He will be found, and he will be found whole, and Destruction's imagination will stretch far beyond my own in plans for retribution for any who dare lay hands. Be assured of that."
As for solace in the meantime? He could... offer nothing. Nothing beyond his own coils. Scratching at the air had yielded no clues, no suggestion of where the portal had gone, and no means of opening it again. The knowledge stung at him in what he assumed was a pale reflection of how Echo was feeling now. Zero Dream "I hate feeling like this." She let the side of her face rest against scales once more. "It's not... It's not me. I've... I don't think I've ever quite felt like this before."
The message was clear : she was now calm enough to be scared of just where her rage would lead her. And if Nergal ever learnt of it ? Would he still love her ?
She gave a shiver. "...I am lost." Sosiqui "This Age has led many to discover sides they never knew." Tian Yue glanced up at the wounded sky. "Perhaps... you are lost, but you are not alone." He turned to look at the Aoidei, then twined himself lightly in a circle around Echo. "Never alone. Not with your Aoidei. Not with me." Zero Dream That was right... she wasn't alone. Anyone she had told this to had done their best to help her, even if it all seemed hopeless. Perhaps pain had made her turn a blind eyes on that aspect. "...You're right. Of course. ...Thank you." Sosiqui "And if any of them dare enter my presence, I will end them," Tian Yue said, simply, in a surprisingly matter-of-fact tone. "Do call me when retribution is at hand so I can sink fangs into one of them, will you?" His smile was quite deliberately sharp. Zero Dream That smile would have probably have made anyone jump right out of their skin, but.. not her. Not the in mindset she was in now. She could probably stare straight in the face of death himself (or what it herself ?) without even flinching. "I will."
She pondered for a moment. She still needed to find Ankou and tell him. She knew little about the god, but it was easy enough to guess he would not be happy in the least. "Could you do me a favor, in the meanwhile ? If you see a redhead at the pantheon... Can you tell him to come see me ? His name is Adrian, and he hosts the spirit guide. Nergal's brother. I do not look forward to breaking the news but he needs to know." Since this seemed to be a world-hopping experience, Ankou might be able to help. Sosiqui "His brother, hm? Interesting." Tian Yue couldn't imagine their relationship was anything like the one he shared with Zhijian, but still. "If I see such a host, I will certainly tell him to seek you out. And if I sense Nergal anywhere within my sphere of power, I will fly to him first and send Toki to you." Zero Dream She gave a slow nod. The whole idea of him having a brother was somewhat alien to even her - and she had no idea how the two would actually behave when in the same room.
"Thank you." She whispered. Sosiqui "Is there anything else I can do for you? Now?" Tian Yue raised his head to peer at where the portal must have opened, his ears flicked back a bit. Zero Dream "I... Should go home. Try to rest." And try to pretend she did not hear the emptiness in the other side of the house. "I.... have not slept much." The bothersome side-effects of a still-mortal body. Maybe it was partway helping all the mood swings. It hadn't really occurred to her.
"I need to calm down, and see what I should do about this. I cannot stand by idly and wait. I've done enough of that, and I am directly involved in this." Sosiqui "Of course," Tian Yue said, trying to sound as soothing as possible. "Rest can heal many things. It can make you feel less broken and more... more angry. Take strength from that anger, not weakness. Use it as your tool." He lightly nuzzled at her tears, then snorted gently.
"May I fly you home?" Zero Dream "If... If that is not of any bother to you ?" To be truthful, she was quite glad he asked - her eyes stung and she could not quite trust herself to ride Aria at the moment. The boys could bring the errais back, easily, like the little sweetheart she was. Sosiqui "Of course not. Here, now..." Tian Yue shifted, pulled away from her out of the odd dragon's embrace and into a position much easier for flight, much easier for her to mount. Zero Dream The goddess wobbled a bit - apparently he had also pretty much been supporting her as well - but once she recovered her footing, she settled herself on his back, lightly gripping his mane for hold. Rest did not sound like a bad idea at all...
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Posted: Sat Jan 14, 2012 5:57 pm
Cold Choices
A cold and implacable anger had seated itself in Tian Yue's gut, and the dragon's eyes were sharp and narrow as he flew towards home after dropping Echo off. Something, someone, had taken Underworld - of that much he was sure, thanks to the subterfuge of using Echo's name. Otherwise, Nergal might have seemed to just vanish, gone off of his own will as the gods frequently did.
Whoever they were, they would pay dearly for their error.
Toki gave him a look of alarm as he coiled through the skylight. The dragon caught the offered robe up in his teeth and waited for the Aoide to leave before shifting back to human form and getting dressed. A moment later, there was a quiet cough outside the dividing curtain. "My Lord?"
"Someone has taken Nergal. Underworld." He answered the unspoken question sharply.
There was a sharp intake of breath from the Aoide. "Taken?"
"Used a trick to lure him - I do not know what has happened, but he was brought to a place by subterfuge and then taken from it." His tail lashed back and forth beneath his robe, and he swept the curtain aside. "I could find nothing else."
"Lord, who..." Toki shook his head, his eyes wide. "Who would dare do such a thing?"
"I don't know. I don't know Nergal well enough to know if he had enemies. Echo was surprised." That was an understatement.
"A-and? What... will you do?" Toki squirmed.
"I don't know what I can do." Tian Yue paced past the Aoide. "All I know is that he's gone and that he was tricked, and I can only assume it was hostile since he hasn't returned or sent word. From the scents, it seemed they used a portal to take him... somewhere. Damn!" He smacked the side of one of the chairs. "Nothing else."
"You could tell Lord Harmodius?"
"I could. But Echo... I will have to ask her, first. And Underworld has a brother, she said. For now..." He sighed. "This is their search." It made him squirm, like it did when he was reminded that he couldn't save everyone - yet he knew, logically, if he paced through the city searching for people to rescue he'd never get anything done. And what of the people far away? in other towns? other planets? worlds?
There had to be a line. Even immortals had limits, and at the moment his own were very sharply defined. "I will ask her if she wants me to help her in that way. If he is truly in mortal danger, I am certain Lord Harmodius already knows. He could have him back in a heartbeat if He willed it." A certain bitterness, there. Why hadn't he?
Hard questions, asked of gods. It might well be that someone would ask him those questions someday. Why? Why didn't you? Why did this happen? How could you allow it?
How often were they asked now, every day? Every hour?
"I am sorry," Toki said, quietly.
"Thank you."
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Posted: Sat Jan 14, 2012 5:58 pm
Apologies Too Late
"My lord?"
Tian Yue turned around from his research, another weighty atlas of some far away and possibly dead world spread across his desk. "Hm?"
"My lord... it seems Nebula has returned from wherever she went. I saw... a creature shamble downstairs, pick up something from the kitchen, and enter her rooms." Toki made a face. "Foul thing, blank and empty."
"Really... well, then." Tian Yue sighed and stood up, brushing the old paper-dust from his hands. "I wonder if is still Nebula, then, or if Phaedra has replaced her."
Toki bowed. "That I do not know, my Lord. Will you go to her?"
"I suppose I had better," Tian Yue replied, opening his desk drawer and pulling out a tightly wrapped scroll. He'd written the whole history there, the whole tale of Cat, Rat and Tien Lung Dragon King. All ready. A gift for her.
An apology, of sorts.
"Good luck?" Toki said, hesitantly.
Tian Yue made a face. "Thank you. Which door was it?"
"Oh, come, come... I'll show you." Toki beamed and darted off.
The door was around a corner, maybe two - the layout of the Pantheon's second floor didn't seem consistent, but once Tian Yue laid eyes on it... the ownership was obvious. Gold, rubies, opulence... Greed.
Toki's wings fluttered nervously. "Lord...?"
"You may go," Tian Yue said, and he watched Toki zip away, bemused. Well, perhaps he just didn't like seen Nebula so... so used. He took a deep breath, then lifted one hand up and knocked. The knocker, brass, was cool in his hand.
It took a moment, but he soon heard soft sounds inside, then the latch turning. He stepped back as the door opened to reveal - Nebula, not Phaedra yet. Thank goodness.
But something seemed off, somehow. The Aoide's eye was unfocused, and she seemed to wobble on her feet. "Oh. Tian Yue," she said, distantly.
His brow furrowed. "Hello, Nebula... Phaedra. Are you doing well?"
"Hmm... oh... I guess so..." Nebula smiled, vapidly. "It's nice to see you again."
What on earth is wrong with her? She's nothing like she used to be... True, the gem in her eye socket was a big clue, but still... they had not yet become one. There was no outward sign! And yet... so changed? Already?
"Good day to you, Worldshield... what a pleasant surprise."
Tian Yue forced himself not to flinch at the strange, purring alto voice, and ignored the barb implicit in her tone in favor of focusing on the host. He could have it out with the goddess for all eternity, if he wanted. Later. "Nebula. I brought you something... something I wanted you to know. About yourself. About who you are."
"Ohhhh?" Nebula blinked, her eye slightly out of focus.
Tian Yue leaned forward a little, hopeful. "You remember the Stars of the Zodiac? Like Shartha, the dragon? Like Lao Shu?"
There was a long pause. He held his breath. "Ye-es," the Aoide said at last, sounding slightly more focused this time.
"Well... Nebula, I found out that you were... almost one of them. Once. A very long time ago. You are the Cat, one of the great lords among animals that was called to feast with Tien Lung... but the Rat tricked you." Tian Yue sighed, and shook his head. "And you were lost..." I'm so sorry...
He watched for any response, but rather than... than gasping, then being angry, being happy, being... being anything at all, Nebula only blinked again, and wobbled a little bit. "Oh..."
"Oh?" Tian Yue gave her a beseeching look. "Do you remember? Any of it? I wanted you to know who you truly were, and to... to apologize..." His voice trailed off.
"I... that's nice..." There was another long pause. "But I am Greed now." A note of confidence came into her voice.
"Well, yes, I know that, but-"
Nebula waved one hand, cut him off. "That was a long time ago. I don't...." She hesitated, telling. "Care... anymore..."
"I see." Tian Yue shook his head. "Then, here." He held the scroll out to her. For a moment he was afraid she wouldn't even take it, but she did. "This holds the entire story. If you decide you do care..."
"If you have nothing else to discuss - we have business elsewhere," Phaedra put in. Her tone was rich with false sweetness, and Tian Yue's gaze hardened. Don't push me too far, dear lady Greed.
"Nebula will do with this knowledge as she will," the goddess continued after a moment, some of the sass purged from her voice.
"So I hope. Goodbye, Phaedra. Take care... Nebula." He hesitated a moment longer, then turned and stalked down the hall, tall, stiff, until he turned around the corner. Then he drooped, sighed, leaned against the wall.
And so it ends. So ignominious. True, he couldn't force her to acknowledge their shared past, but he had been hoping for at least a little... just a bit of redemption...
"It's not your fault," came a quiet voice. Toki was standing in the doorway to his chambers, looking vaguely ashamed.
"It is... but I'm not going to let it destroy me," Tian Yue replied, his voice a bit louder than it needed to be. "She made her choice. I did what I could. The past is past..."
"Yes, my Lord. You are right. To worry endlessly about the past... it is binding. It forbids you to move forward."
"Hmm." A smile played across Tian Yue's face. "Surprising wisdom, coming from an unexpected source."
Toki gave him a wounded look. "My Lord!"
The Dragon King chuckled. "Come. Let us see if we can make sense of all those maps."
Losing himself in books... sounded like an excellent idea.
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Posted: Sat Jan 14, 2012 5:59 pm
New Reality in an Old WorldTalencia The land wasn't as lovely and welcoming as it once had been. So long, so very long she had been trapped in that tree! Her eyes took in the dry, despairing woods. Some had clearly burned not long ago. Patches she viewed across valleys still smoldered, the smoke still drifting on the listless breeze. The sun never shown, and all the foliage was wilting and sickly. Nothing was as it should be, and she couldn't find room to mourn.
She was still numb from waking to this new world. No, not a new world. It was the same old one, just in a new time, a new perspective to an individual from a previous time. She still kept the sliver of the tree tucked near her skin inside her bodice. Occasionally she'd raise her hand to touch the fabric over it. The tears would well, but no longer fell. Instead, she just kept walking, cloak fastened over her pack, putting one foot in front of the other down the dead and lonely road.
Finally, unsure of how long she'd really been walking, she stumbled across a choked and muddy waterway. It might have once been a large stream, but now it was nothing but a trickle, with thick and yellowed weeds tangling about the dry banks. She didn't bother struggling down into the stream bed. Instead, she found a large rock, somewhat flat along the top, to climb up on. She scrambled up, dislodging dried clods of what must have once been mud. She registered a dull moment of surprise, realizing this rock had once been in the stream's path.
Once atop the rock, she sat and unstrapped her pack, laying her cloak upon the rock before pulling out her meager supplies. She opted for some tough jerky and a can of what appeared to be pear juice. She ate and drank mechanically, eyes roving over the sad landscape. What had happened here? Shivering with shock, the little tea troll felt very alone in the big empty world. Sosiqui This place is dead.
Some of the world seemed to survive Destruction's onslaught better than others; while perhaps mountains were eroding faster and more prone to rockfalls and avalanche, it wasn't as if their peaks were cracking to bits on a daily basis. But places like this, places reliant on a delicate balance of weather, soil, and river to survive... they were easy to throw off-balance.
Easy to kill.
Tian Yue twined through the sky with his brow furrowed, in as much as a dragon could adopt the expression. He had very little hope of happening upon anything regarding Nergal's disappearance, but even with the search for the ancient Pantheon, he had to get out and at least make an effort. There was too much nervous energy for research alone.
Even as he searched, he was also making notes, surveying the land, trying to make plans for when his power increased enough to allow his protection to expand. This place... might not be on the map for a while, sadly. What a shame. What a waste.
No, there had to be something to Lucius' thoughts about Destruction's wild power.
As the dragon flew, he spotted something below, a little dot of color in the midst of blank dead and dying things. Curious, he canted his flight downwards. Just in case. Talencia Slowly, through the fog of astonishment and incomprehension, normal sensations were beginning to soak in. Her tummy made gurgly sounds, telling her the food hadn't been enough, after centuries of drinking her nutrition through roots and sunlight. She sighed heavily and pulled another bit of jerky out of the pack, eating with a little more awareness this time.
The next sensation to creep into her awareness was pain. Her feet were throbbing horrendously. Setting aside the jerky, she leaned to touch them. The shoes she had been wearing so very long ago hadn't been made for traveling. They had been her dancing shoes, the ones she wore to enjoy herself and feel pretty. Pretty was not functional by any stretch of the imagination. Carefully she removed each shoe, wincing as blisters and raw spots scraped or broke open. This was not going to do. She hadn't thought to stop and consider her footwear when leaving behind the tea troll town.
Setting aside the shoes, she used the edges of her cloak to dab at the couple places that were seeping fluid. She hadn't any idea of how to resolve this, save to walk barefoot. Surely that'd be better than this torture, though with the sores, she wasn't entirely sure that was wise either. Biting her lip, overwhelmed by recent events, she set to finishing her second piece of jerky before setting on her way again. Sosiqui The brightly colored speck turned out to be... a human? No, not a human; too small for that. The proportions were wrong, even for a child. But its body language, as the dragon spiraled closer, spoke of despair and exhaustion.
Hm.
"Greetings," Tian Yue called out, moving to land a good fifteen feet away, on the opposite side of the former stream. As soon as he landed, his claws sank into the mud and stagnant water, and a small swarm of flies took startled flight from the nearby crumbling reeds. Ugh... Still, he perked his ears and tried to look as non-threatening and friendly as possible; he didn't think he looked like a monster, but it wasn't his own views that mattered. "I come in peace," he added, hoping that would help, even if it was a horribly cheesy line. Talencia Betha was experimentally wiggling her toes when a faint breeze and a voice made her look up, just in time to see something land on the other side of the choked stream. She blinked in astonishment at first, not responding at all to the greeting. Instead she openly stared. The rock she was sitting on raised her to eye level on the creature that now watched her interestedly across the way. Her eyes were wide as she took in the horns, the scales, the ruff, the slender muzzle, and the long tail. Her first fight or flight instinct was to run for her life from this much larger and much fiercer animal.
But Betha was not a beast, and she still had the slower reactions and more steady demeanor of her tree-self lingering faintly in the back of her mind. She took a deep breath and looked more carefully at the... it occurred to her that she knew what this was. Why, it was a dragon! Amazement continued to delay her response to his greeting, so that he apparently felt the need to reassure her.
He comes in peace? It startled a quick answer from her. "Peace, in this land?" She glanced around at the pitiful land. "I don't think there has been peace here for a long time." The clear thoughts helped settle her emotions, and she gave the rather intimidating looking being an apologetic half-smile. "I'm sorry for my rudeness. Your kind are never seen here, though we know of you. Or did." It occurred to her that she had no idea what people nowadays knew or didn't know.
She rose to her painful feet and curtsied. "Greetings to you as well, sir dragon," she continued a bit awkwardly. She supposed she should be as polite as possible, so as not to be eaten. Dragons ate maidens, didn't they? Or did they just steal them? Was he here to steal her? Thoughts tumbled through her mind before she introduced herself. "I am Betha of the tea trolls." Sosiqui Tea trolls? He wasn't entirely sure what that was, but Betha was rather cute, almost like how he'd always imagined a hobbit would be - though, obviously, not quite. "My name is Tian Yue," he said, politely, then glanced around the dying landscape. His ears pinned back. "Yes, I can see that. I hope peace will come again - no, it will come again, though it may take time. I can promise you that," he added, straightening up. "I'm sorry. Did... do... you live here?" Talencia The mournful tone, followed by such determination made Betha peer closer at him. This was very strange dragon behavior, by all she'd heard. "That seems like an awfully big promise, Tian Yue," she replied soberly. "My people used to live not far from here," she paused, swallowing a lump in her throat. "But that was long ago. I don't know where they dwell now, or if they even..." She trailed off, unable to say it. She bit her lip and sat down again, tucking her abused feet beneath her skirts.
"I don't think I can live here any more, though." Her voice was small and soft, a sad admission to herself as much as to the dragon. "There is nothing for me here any more." A tear shone as it slid down her cheek, but she did not give in to wails or sobs. She merely gave a shuddering breath and wiped the wet streak from her face. A more coherent thought concerning her future crossed her mind. It is time to move on. Closing her eyes for a few heartbeats, she spoke again. "So I am going elsewhere. Where are you headed, friend?" She opened her eyes again and regarded the unusual creature as calmly as she could, blinking back further dampness from her eyes. Sosiqui "Oh..." Tian Yue's ears drooped a bit. "I'm sorry."
Friend? That was fast, but she did seem a little lost thing in need of help. "I'm going back to my home. Closer to where all this -" he swept his fan-tipped tail about, disturbing the rotting reeds, indicating the span of decay- "began. But there is a place under my protection... although it was damaged for a long time. It is beginning to heal, a little bit." Talencia She frowned at that, her mind flitting back to the "dragon kidnaps virgin girl" tales. She supposed he could be a clever dragon, and she a naive and easy victim. But she was inclined to view the entire thing with a certain amount of skepticism. Overwhelmed, she propped her elbows on her updrawn knees and buried her face in her hands. This was all too surreal. Being trapped in a tree, then being freed into an empty world, and meeting a dragon in the middle of the countryside? This just didn't happen. Magical creatures or no, this was just too far beyond belief.
Getting a grip on herself, she raised her head and gave him a rather probing look. "What do you mean, where it all began? You know what caused all... this?" She gestured with one small hand to the dead land about them. Her brows were drawn together, and her ears twitched uncertainly. Part of her mind still struggled with the believability of the whole thing, but she had to deal with whatever happened here and now. Sosiqui "I do, yes." The tip of Tian Yue's tail swayed back and forth, betraying the dragon's uneasiness. "Destruction, personified and embodied, a god, the Twin Crown, has awoken. This world - all worlds - now bends to His aspect." Talencia Her eyes followed the tip of his tail, unable to meet his eyes after such a statement. Her arms were now wrapped around her legs, the tips of her tired toes peeking out from the edge of her skirt.
As if a dragon wasn't hard enough to deal with, now she had a god to hold responsible for the demise of her people and their valley? No, not just their valley. He had said all worlds. Troubled and dismayed, she voiced her foremost thought. "But why?" Sosiqui "Why?" Tian Yue blinked. "Why... what? If you mean why has he awakened, then... that was because of treachery." The dragon's ears flattened a bit more, just for a moment. "As to the reason behind his power.. he is divine. The mortal worlds cannot help but bend to that." Talencia She stared at him in obvious bafflement and dismay. All because of the nature of this god he spoke of. Destruction seemed an appropriate word for the god that would wreak this kind of affect on the lands. She gave a shake of her head, her ears drooping. "It makes no sense to me, and I don't mind saying it. Mine is a mortal mind, with mortal cares. I know naught of gods and their desires." Still, there was a bleakness in her voice. If only there was hope. "So is it to be thus, from now on, friend dragon?" Her blue eyes were sad and almost pleading. "Tell me what you know, if you please? I feel I have a long journey ahead of me, and with a heart so heavy, how can I go on?" Sosiqui "No," Tian Yue said, forcefully, and surprised himself with the near-roar of vehemence he himself produced. "No," he repeated, a bit more quietly, and smiled. "Even if I must exert myself to the utmost and do nothing but protect, it will not always be like this. Not always. Not everywhere."
And if Lucius is right, then what?
But he couldn't worry about that. Not with the trembling fragile one here before him. "I am the Dragon King Tien Lung, and my title is Worldshield. I can protect the world - all worlds - once I regain my power. I, too, am divine." Strange, somehow, how 'god' was subordinate to 'Dragon King' in his mind - but a newcomer would not know that, would not understand. Talencia His strong response made her gulp and rock backwards, thrusting both hands behind her so as not to fall over. Her wide eyes searched his face, taking in his strident denial and something that sounded like a vow to protect them. And then even as she formed the question of how, he announced himself a Dragon King... a god himself?
For one moment, she had the semi-hysterical thought that he seemed awfully small to be a king of dragons. But something in his gaze, his stance, told her it was truth. Here was a god before her, telling her of another god who was responsible for the dying of the land, while also promising protection from that god later on. She quite suddenly felt very small in a very big world.
She swallowed slowly, her throat dry. "This is a bit much for the likes of me," she admitted in a very low, soft voice. "I... I can't help but think of more questions to ask," she continued, still softly. "Please forgive me, great lord, for my impudence in questioning you." She cast her eyes down, mind whirling. She had asked for hope, and hope he might have given, along with other stunning truths. Dared she go on? The pull was still there, like some task undone or forgotten. But did she dare follow that call? And what of this god in flesh and blood before her?
She raised her eyes hesitantly. Yes, he breathed. His claws were indeed sunk in the mud. The flies buzzed about him and landed on his scales, and in his mane. He was real. And all he told her was real. Overwhelmed wasn't a big enough word for how she felt. Her next question felt drawn from her. "What is it I, so small and alone, can do to help stand against what even the gods strive against?" Sosiqui "Impudence? Hardly." Tian Yue tilted his head at her, and smiled. "Some gods may well demand instant obeisance from those they meet, but I am not one of them." He felt for her, strongly, for some reason - her ache, her pain in the world around her, was so easy for him to see. She seemed so fragile.
How do they live, so? How did I... live, so? One small life, one small collection of lives, crying defiance against the uncaring infinite?
Because there are gods at their sides...
Even so. Tian Yue slid over to her rock through the water and perched by the tiny teatroll's side with a soft whuff. "Only believe. There are many gods even now ascending to power, and they are sustained and strengthened by mortal belief." He remembered having this conversation with Penny, when he was newly born. "Believe in love, and Love himself draws strength. Believe in the glory of the stars, and Universe feels fresh power. Perhaps it seems small to you, but in this age of rebirth every spark can become a flame." Talencia What a strange thing it was, to have such a great and mighty one as this speak so tenderly to her. She stared deep into his eyes, so near now. Only believe... and they would grow strong? The idea did seem logically absurd, but something unnamable stirred within her, an inner trust of what he told her.
"And you?" she asked hesitantly. "What must I believe in to bring you power?" Surely to shield all worlds that there might be, he must be bigger and stronger than he was now? She did want to help, and she was naturally drawn to want to help Tian Yue, first and foremost. He was here, reassuring her, and speaking of protecting the world from this Destruction's sway.
This one, who would give his all to shield every living thing. This one, taking the time to calm her fears, soothe her cry for knowledge. He who so clearly wanted to make things better. Touched by his devotion to what he himself clearly believed in, she did what she would never have dared do, had she given actual thought to it. She raised one small hand and stroked his nose, so near to her now that he rested by her rock. Sosiqui Well, that seemed to have calmed her down some. Pleased, Tian Yue lowered his head for more effective petting, since she seemed to take comfort in the movement. "In dragons, perhaps. In the power to protect and the will to see the the world stabilized."
He paused for a moment, flicking one ear at the distant harsh call of a bird. "I can lead you to the place I am guarding now, if you like. The town has been broken again and again by Destruction's power, so it is not in good shape, but there are places of safety here and there." He wouldn't claim the whole place as safe, not by a long shot, but... hm, he could talk to Penny, perhaps. Or Evin; having a... well, not human, but at least humanoid... friend would probably be good for him. Talencia Then believe in dragons she would, she vowed inwardly. But his offer to show her a safe place, away from all this made her stop. She glanced back the way she'd come, eartips twitching uneasily. She'd never been so far from home. Then again, it wasn't her home any longer. She plunged her hands into her skirts and knotted them into fists, clutching the fabric tightly. It was time to leave the past behind.
Looking anxious, she turned back to Tian Yue. "Please show me where you protect the land," she answered in a tight voice. "There is nothing for me here now." She fought the rising urge to weep, tightening her fists around her skirt fabric. No more tears, it was time to move on. Sosiqui A glance at the teatroll's still bare feet revealed that walking was definitely out of the question. Well - flying it was going to have to be, then. Eventually, he wasn't going to be able to do things like this. Not unless he made a point of making time and space to tend to one mortal among many...
Time to make the most of it, then.
He drew as much of himself up onto the rock as he could, though that left his hindquarters in the water. "I will take you there. You can sit on my back, just in front of my forelegs, and hold my mane if you wish." Talencia "You want me to...," she gulped," ride you?" The whole idea seemed terribly preposterous and added to the surreality of her life thus far. She shivered all over for a moment, struggling to quell the rising panic that none of this really did exist. No, she had to believe. Tian Yue said she had to believe. And she would. Determinedly she set her jaw, murmuring to herself, "I do believe in dragons."
So determined was she that she completely forgot her small pack of supplies. She rose to her sore and blistered feet and approached the dragon slowly. Her tail twined behind her like a vine whipped in a fierce wind. Oh, how she trembled! But his kind eyes and gentle movements kept her from being completely rattled. Taking a deep breath, eyes wide at being so close, she clumsily tried to climb up. She slipped several times, wincing at what a terrible imposition this was for such a great king of dragons as this, to have some bumbly mortal scrabbling about on him like a blind squirrel. The idea nearly made her giggle, which made her hiccup, which made her lose her balance again. This time she nearly tumbled over his other side entirely, but she caught hold of his mane and managed to jerk herself upright again.
Instantly she was contrite, and let go with a little cry. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to pull!" It was more difficult to not be afraid, without his calming eyes to gaze into. The little tea troll felt terribly out of place and out of her ken, sitting on the back of a dragon king in the midst of a land ravaged by a god named Destruction. What would her mother have said?? Sosiqui "Don't worry about that," Tian Yue said, though he had winced a bit - he flew carefully enough that none of those he carried had ever needed to pull at his mane, but he hadn't taken boarding mishaps into account. "I won't let you fall. Ready, then?"
After waiting a moment to make sure Betha was steady, Tian Yue lightly pushed off the ground and rose upwards, his wingless flight stable and slow, bearing more resemblance to an airship rising into the air than a bird taking flight. Talencia Afraid to pull his mane again, but needing to clutch at something before he moved, she made do with bracing her hands against the sides of his neck. His scales were cool and smooth beneath her hands, but straddling his neck was proving to be a bit uncomfortable. Short tea trell legs apparently weren't meant for riding anything bigger than the smallest of ponies. No wonder her people mostly used hooved beasts for hauling and pulling! Still, she wasn't about to say a word of complaint. She simply had to be the first tea troll to fly, much less on a dragon!
When he rose, she gave a little gasp, for it felt as if he'd left part of her behind on the rock. She leaned slightly to the side to look down, and immediately wished she hadn't. Even closing her eyes didn't help much, though, since she could hear the water trickling off his hind legs and tail, the pattering of it hitting ground and reed and stream becoming fainter with every heartbeat.
I believe in dragons! With this bolstering thought, she opened her eyes again, banishing the fear in her mental mantra. I believe in dragons! They were a good deal higher now, and she was able to look over the countryside with wonder. How different things looked from this vantage point! The rolling hills, yellow with dried grasses, began to appear more like a rumpled skirt than a series of earth mounds. The choked stream now resembled a pale green ribbon, draped across the skirt's fabric. Why, from up here, the land looked almost beautiful!
All she could do was hold on tight and watch with rounded eyes as they moved through the air. It didn't occur to her to be grateful for the smoothness of his flight. She'd never even considered what it would be like to fly, nor ever pondered the surging quality of a bird's flight. This was a completely new concept to her very over-loaded mind, and all she could do was soak it in while staring in astonishment. Sosiqui Tian Yue made sure to keep his flight especially level and still, high enough to give a nice view and be safe, but not too high, so as not to frighten Betha - he couldn't see her, but the little movements and shifts she made told him volumes. Obviously this was a new thing.
He turned carefully towards the Pantheon, pondering what he should do with the teatroll once they were within his shield. The Pantheon itself would likely frighten her, but it was safe - something he couldn't promise about the rest of the town proper. Perhaps the Cosmodrome, even though that wasn't within the shield yet...
"Where would you like to go?" he asked, raising his voice so she could hear him above the wind. "There is the Pantheon, where I live, which is safe but...a bit imposing. I do have some friends who live in other parts of the city. The world is strange now. People live in tight groups to protect themselves and their resources." Talencia The compelling urge to search stirred again at his inquiry. How was she supposed to know where? Drawing her knees up higher to ease the pressure on her hips, she gnawed her lip and considered his options. That Pantheon place certainly did sound daunting, the way he said it. She could hear the capital P, and the name itself implied there were more gods there. Maybe even this Destruction? No, that was no place for her.
Leaning forward towards her head, she gingerly settled herself against his mane in order to call up to him. "Could you take me to a safe place in the city, please?" For a moment her mind whirled in worry that she was being respectful enough to such a mighty being. A sudden realization of the wild and clean smell of his mane distracted her, though. The lovely, thrilling scent that rose from it made her smile unexpectedly, and she couldn't help burying her face in it for a moment, inhaling deeply. It gave her courage, and joy, and peace. Was this part of his magic?
Whether it was or not, she took advantage of it. She breathed in the heartening aroma deeply, taking heart from her bolstered spirits. Things would be alright. How could they not, when she was being given a ride by a dragon king? Content, she settled in as best she could, once again taking advantage of the chance to peer at the land from a unique view. Sosiqui "Very well. A member of my court, Shartha, lives in an abandoned hotel not too far from where I live... she is a dragon, though not the same kind as I am. She will not harm you, and she has a human companion, Evin." Shartha would be kind to Betha, he was sure, as would Evin... but where would they go from there?
Well, it wasn't his job to manage the teatroll's life for her... still, he knew that she would be easy prey if she fell afoul of trouble. Talencia She suppressed a sudden sigh. Big folk and more dragons? Oh, how her world was all topsy-turvy! "Thank you, you have been very kind to me," she answered him meekly. Her mind reeled with unanswerable questions... like what would she do, once she was there? Would they let her live there? What would her role be? She shivered from head to toe for a moment. Nothing was certain anymore, even when one was breathing the very fumes of courage from the mane of a Dragon King. Silent again, she huddled on his back and waited to see what this new life held for her. Sosiqui "Of course. It is my duty to protect," Tian Yue said, flicking his tail. He was the Worldshield, the protector of the divine realm from those who would seek to harm... yet also protector of mortals from the unfettered power of the Pantheon. It went both ways. It was impossible to be one without the other, even if his focus at present seemed to be the latter rather than the former.
The city was close now, and with it, his shield. "We are going into the area of protection now," he warned her, remembering Illa's reaction and not wanting to startle her. A moment later the shield swept over them both, and the oppressive feeling of Destruction's influence dropped sharply away. Tian Yue took a deep breath. Talencia She knew the words, but had no idea what the reality of it would be. Not daring to lean over, she saw nothing ahead. But the moment they passed the threshold, she knew. She gave a sharp gasp of breath, her grip on his neck tightening. Not a clue had she to the concept of the influence and sway of Destruction, nor what it had really meant that this god protected some of the world from it. Though still dim, she now had a better idea.
The despair, the sadness that had darkened her heart, the shadow over her thoughts, cleared as if it had never been. There was still lingering sadness over the death of her people's lands, and the disappearance of those people. But her mind wasn't so clouded and prone to being overwhelmed. Instead, she felt exhilarated. She was riding a dragon!! Instead of frightening changes, she saw a chance for adventure. Granted, her folk had never been very big on adventuring, but they were even less prone to depression and doldrums. She resisted the impulsive urge to give a great whooping warcry of joy. What came out of her mouth instead was a rather delicate and awed, "Oh!" Sosiqui Tian Yue smiled at her reaction, then tilted his fight towards the Wildflower Suites hotel. True, other beings had set up camp in the lower floors, but Shartha had long since cleared out the upper floors for her own domain, and she patrolled it zealously. It gave her something to do in the absence of an established Court. "Shartha lives here... you'll have to ask her to take you down, as she's sealed the stairwells and elevator shafts, to prevent anyone from entering without her leave. Dragons are... possessive." Another smile.
A moment later, there was a flicker of movement and another dragon rose into the air from the hotel's roof, this one smaller and compact, with stubby wings that seemed completely incapable of sustaining flight, yet also bearing a rider. "Ah, there she is." Tian Yue roared, and Shartha answered. Talencia It was then that she noticed how tall the buildings here were, many more stories than she had imagined. The idea of living so high, so far away from the earth... it made her dizzy as his flight hadn't. One thing about tea trolls was that they were rather attached to the earth. They loved to garden, and some had even lived in homey caves. Now Betha struggled inwardly with a surge of uneasiness at being told her new home was so far above the ground. What should she say? Who was she to look a gift donkey in the mouth?
So instead she clamped her mouth shut. She'd figure something out. Surely there was some way to work this out without insulting her divine benefactor. She really truly liked the dragon, so far, and would hate to appear ungrateful to him.
She felt him vibrate with the roar, and looked to see the other dragon and passenger. Silly little tea troll, she at first thought Shartha must be the rider. She wasn't used to thinking in terms of fairytales. So it was with surprise that she realized that Shartha was the dragon. Her rider might be the other individual that Tian Yue had mentioned. Trying to pull a name out of her memory while flying at an angle towards another dragon that lived in a tower of a building, by tea troll standards, wasn't something she could manage. She let it go, figuring she'd learn the name soon enough. Particularly if she did indeed end up staying with them for a time. Sosiqui Soon, Shartha was besides them, the blond-haired young man on her back giving Betha a curious look. "Good day, my Lord - but who is this?" The dragon turned her blunt muzzle to examine the teatroll, a vaguely suspicious look on her face. "This is Betha - she was lost," Tian Yue told her, giving her a meaningful look. "The Pantheon is not the right place for her, I don't think, so I hope she can prevail upon your hospitality. Evin?"The boy jumped a bit at being directly addressed, but he bowed his head. "I would be happy to help, my Lord." His smile this time was more warm. He knew about being lost. "Of course," Shartha added, though she didn't seem entirely sure. "As my Lord commands." Talencia Betha, confronted with the two strangers, suddenly felt terribly self-conscious. Her clothes were shabby and antiquated, and her hair and fur were all blown askew by the flight here. She returned the suspicious dragon's gaze with a gulp and a lowering of her eyes, huddling just slightly closer to the protective mane of the dragon king. What was she doing, she wondered, feeling mortified. Asking yet another dragon to be imposed upon with her presence?
"I... I don't have to stay, if it's a problem," she ventured in a voice that only slightly quivered. Her blue eyes were huge as she glanced at the boy. He appeared a bit more friendly, but still... truth be told, she couldn't help feeling just faintly homesick for the familiar old town, with its tiny cottages and dirt streets. This was as far different as to be an eagle's eyrie. Sosiqui "No, it's no problem," Shartha said promptly, nodding her head. "Forgive me, m'lady, I was merely surprised by the request." "I'll take good care of you," Evin added, resting one hand on Shartha's back. "Don't worry," Tian Yue said. "Here, let's land and go in - Evin, if you could bring me a robe once we're on the roof...""Of course, my Lord." "Thank you. Hold on, Betha..." Tian Yue turned downwards in a neat spiral. A moment later he landed on the roof, his claws scraping a bit against the tile. This had been a rooftop garden and pool, once; the garden was mostly brown and dead, now, but the pool was actually clean. "And here we are."Shartha landed nearby; Evin scrambled off her back immediately and vanished through a nearby door. Talencia Clumsily, she eased one of her legs across his neck, then slid to the ground with a thud. Unexpectedly, her knees gave out when she landed, which meant she sort of sat where she touched down, rather than stood. She blinked in surprise that her legs were so weak. Unable to help a faint groan, she got her bare feet under herself and rose to stand to her diminutive height before looking around.
She noticed first where the boy Evin had gone, but soon was visually exploring the rooftop. The pool looked surprisingly inviting considering that she didn't know how to swim. Her blistered toes longed to be dangled into some cool, clean water, but before she could move, she spotted the plot of earth where things had been growing once. A few still survived, though sickly. The rest were that shade of brown that told of their demise. Still, it was earth!
She was drawn to it with the terribly strong urge to set her heels into some nice soft dirt, but she resisted with all her will. It wouldn't do to forget one's manners! So instead, she turned and curtsied to the smaller dragon. "Please forgive my sudden arrival, Miss Shartha," she spoke humbly. "It was not my intention to become a burden. The Dragon King Tian Yue felt it would be best if I came here, so here I am." She glanced uncertainly at him. Social graces were not her greatest talent. Tea trolls weren't much for strict social etiquette, thus setting her mind at a distinct disadvantage in such prestigious company. "I will gladly do chores, tend the garden, and whatever else needs doing, in exchange for the inconvenience of my arrival." She hoped this was the right thing to do. There was just so much she didn't know about this new world she had found herself in. Sosiqui "Oh, that's quite alright," Shartha said, bobbing her head. "Evin does such things, so you could ask him if you really wanted, I suppose... I don't exactly have the dexterity for such things myself, you know." Her smile was toothy, but pleasant enough. A moment later, Evin came out with a clean gray robe, and held it out to the dragon. "Here you are, my Lord." "Good, good." The dragon reached out one claw and took the robe, then nodded to the group. "One moment..." He crouched, and took off, spiraling down and out of sight."Evin?" Shartha asked, glancing at him. "Betha has offered you some help." "Oh, no - you're a guest in this house... er... place," Evin said, shaking his head. "Please don't feel obligated to do anything! As our Lord commands, so it shall be. It's not troublesome. Really, it isn't." He nodded, earnestly. Talencia Refusal of her help only made her discomfort more acute. The longer she stood here, so very high above the solid ground, the more distressed she was becoming. She was careful to remain polite, but she felt all out of sorts and began to show small signs that normally would have been easy to control. She began to fidget and glance around nervously. Her toes itched to dig into the small plot of soil nearby, so she began to unconsciously shift herself slowly in that direction. And worst of all, she began to feel dizzy. She was SURE she could feel this tall structure swaying beneath her. Before long, she was going to have to squeeze her eyes shut and cling to something to keep from falling down.
Who knew she'd end up being so afraid of heights? She attempted to focus herself on the boy and not so much on his dragonish companion, but the whole thing was just too weird for her. She swayed where she stood. Sosiqui A moment later, a man with a dragon tail landed lightly on the ground beside Betha, clad in the robe Evin had been holding. "It's me, Tian Yue," he said, quickly, crouching down so that he was at Betha's level. "This is my human shape. Hmm..."
She looked afraid. He supposed he couldn't blame her, but... he felt bad. "Are you sure you're alright with staying here? You can come back with me, if you'd prefer... I do assure you you'll be safe here, even if it is strange." Perhaps everything was strange for her. She was shying at shadows, at every breath of wind.Talencia She clenched her hands together to try and stop fidgeting, to mind her manners. She nearly came unglued when a man landed before her, dressed apparently only in a... robe? And with a tail? She stifled a yelp when crouched and spoke. Everything seemed wrong, everything seemed frightening. "It's too high!" she managed to gasp, her fingers gripping each other so tight her knuckles were turning white. She trembled with the effort of holding still, and her eyes rolled to the two that lived her. She tried to convey apologies, but nothing more was coming out of her her mouth. Growing desperate, she turned pleading eyes on the man who said he was Tian Yue. The eyes did seem to be right, somehow. Those same eyes that she had stared into so close earlier. They seemed to exude calm, but she was too near hysterics in her fear of heights to feel reassured. Sosiqui "Oh dear." Tian Yue bit his lip. It was obvious the teatroll was in serious distress. "No... no. This won't work, then. I'm sorry, Shartha, Evin. Betha." He lightly placed one hand on the teatroll's shoulder. "Let me take you to the Pantheon. Is one floor off the ground okay for you?"
He'd worry about logistics later. For now, she was terrified, and he couldn't ignore that. Talencia Somehow his physical contact with her, his hand on her shoulder, helped her feel safer, more grounded. She steadied some, gulping before she nodded in wordless answer to his question. Why, her own house had had two stories! That was nothing at all. One could still see the ground, even climb out and down from the window, if one really wanted. But this... She gave another hard shudder and turned from the thought. Instead she focused on her old home, with two stories and latticed windows, made from the wood of good, strong trees, surrounded by other such warm and friendly houses, bounded beyond that by the forest. She clung to that memory as her lifeline. Sosiqui "We'll go there, then." Tian Yue nodded to Shartha and Evin. "Don't worry about it.""S'alright, not everyone likes high places," Evin said, with a nod. Shartha just shrugged. "Will we see you again later, my Lord?" "Oh, probably. Here, Betha... would it be alright if I carried you down in my arms, or would you rather fly on Shartha?" He didn't particularly want to shift back into dragon shape right now; he might need it later, and the feeling of having no ability to become dragon was extremely uncomfortable. Still, he also didn't want to bundle up the teatroll like an infant without her consent. Talencia Her head was still whirling, without any more room to worry about rudeness. Instead, she wordlessly answered by stepping closer to him and closing both small hands around his wrist tightly, bright blue eyes locked on his own intently, afraid to look away. If she looked away, she'd lose her anchor, her safety, and see nothing but open sky and buildings, and once again feel the swaying under her feet. She kept her mouth firmly clamped shut, not trusting to her voice to say what she meant to say. Sosiqui Tian Yue nodded. "I may return later tonight," he told Shartha, then knelt to Betha's level again. "Here, I'll carry you - I'll put my arms around your waist, and you hold close. Put your arms around my neck." This was awkward, but it would still work since the flight to the Pantheon from here was quite short. Talencia She merely nodded and held her breath as he picked her up. However, as he studiously grasped her waist and made sure she felt secure, she came to realize just how close she was to him. Child-like she may be, and may look, but she was not actually a child. Granted, she'd tended to steer clear of Big Folk when she had still lived in her village, but with everything in flux now, she found herself unaccountably flustered to be held close to this... well, he didn't look like a dragon anymore, but she supposed he still was. Her face flushed bright red as she gingerly wrapped her small arms about his neck, which practically put her cheek against his.
She hadn't exactly forgotten about her fears, but with her feet off the roof of the strange, towering building, and his arms holding her tightly, entirely different emotions washed through her. Thoroughly embarrassed, she hid her face against his neck and prayed for this to be over soon. Inwardly she chanted, I believe in dragons... I believe in dragons... I believe in dragons... a little too much. Once she was back on level ground, or close to it, she'd get a hold of herself, she was sure. For now, this simply was the closest she'd been to a male that wasn't related to her, and it was highly disconcerting in its pleasantness. It hadn't been a problem when he resembled what she thought of as a dragon. But now that he looked more... normal?... it was another matter entirely. Sosiqui "Don't be afraid," Tian Yue said, giving her his most comforting smile, then walked quietly over to the edge of the roof and simply stepped off into the air. There was no sudden drop, no jarring, practically no indication that he had even left the roof in the first place. He kept himself as level as possible, even though the upright pose was rather bad for wind resistance, and moved carefully towards the Pantheon. As soon as he could, he descended gently, no faster than walking down stairs would be.
So that hadn't been the best decision in the world, but it seemed even the little teatroll hadn't expected that sort of reaction. Odd, since she'd been fine in the air before, on his back. "Almost there..."
He landed carefully on the gravelly path in front of the Pantheon. "And there we are, see?" Tian Yue knelt down at once and released Betha from his grasp. "Better?" Talencia Hiding her face, she couldn't tell when he stepped off the edge, though surely they must be in the air by now. She sneaked a peek, was startled by a gust of whind rushing up at them and tugging on her earfur. She gave a squeak and buried her face against his neck again. He smelled of the summer wind and of clouds and mountains. Or at least, what she imagined they might smell like. She relaxed again and stayed with her face hidden against him until he announced their arrival and set her down.
She let go hastily and wouldn't look up at him. Her face burned with what must be a bright red blush that went all the way to the tips of her ears. She tried to tell herself it was because she'd made a fool of herself up on that tall tower, but she knew it was for an entirely different reason. Mortified, she stared at the ground, trying not to see his bare toes showing clearly under his robe. Instead, she focused on her own bare toes, red for a different reason. They did feel some better, but still looked unhappy. She took a deep breath as he inquired if this was better.
"Yes, much better, thank you," she said in an almost-whisper. "I'm sorry I acted like that," she continued, though she herself wasn't exactly sure if she meant her fear of heights or her appreciation of him. "Please, I...," she trailed off, glancing up at him worriedly. "I don't like being trouble for you. I can find my way from here." She gave a wan smile and took a shaky breath. "You don't have to take me in like a lost puppy." She dropped her eyes again to the gravel and bares toes. It was so odd, standing here with him in that form instead of his dragon form. It made no sense to be more comfortable with him in a mythic body rather than a familiar one. Sosiqui Tian Yue nodded. "Just be careful where you walk, and who you talk to. There are kind gods and cruel gods both here. And... stay away from the right staircase, and the throne." He rather wanted to take her in, lost thing that she was despite her protests to the contrary, but it was almost certain that he would be leaving with Zhiji before too long, as soon as they found their destination. "My chambers are on the second floor, up the left stairs, with a dragon and stars on the door. They are open to you should you need them." Talencia Warmed by his offer, she looked up again, smiling into his eyes. She gave a deep curtsey, bowing her head and then rising again to gaze at him. "Thank you, Tian Yue, King of Dragons. You have been remarkably kind to such a small bother as myself." Her sweet expression reflected the honest and humor in her self-description. "I shall not forget you, nor fail to believe in dragons, so that you may thrive." Blushing again, she reached and took his hand in one of her own small ones. "I promise."
She gave his hand a squeeze, her cheeks flushed and warm, and then stepped back, bare feet crunching on the gravel. In a moment, she'd notice how the tiny rocks pressed painfully against her abused, sore feet. But for now, she kept her whole focus on retaining her small amount of dignity while bidding him farewell. "Perhaps I'll see you again soon. And please, thank Shartha and Evin for me, and send them my apologies. I was not a very good guest, but their hospitality couldn't be faulted. I was grateful for their welcome." She stepped back another step or two and smiled again, though a bit sadly. "Goodbye."
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Posted: Sat Jan 14, 2012 6:00 pm
Needle in a Haystack
The library was as dusty as ever, and just as loathe to give up its secrets. Toki had done much, but the sheer immensity of information available dwarfed all their efforts. Time... we do not have.
It will have to be luck.
He hated depending on something as amorphous and fickle as luck. Tian Yue sighed and flicked another page in yet another atlas, more yellowed pages chronicling innumerable places that might or might not still exist. There didn't seem to be any sort of divine Dewey Decimal System, but if this was indeed Knowledge's domain (as the occasional drift of silver glitter in the dust would suggest)... then Gianfar wouldn't need that, would he?
If only they were all so blessed. Tian Yue was inclined to scholarly pursuits anyway, but his patience was thinning, and no amount of yelling and declaring one's divinity would make the silent tomes magically give up the information he needed.
He leaned in to peer at the letters on this page of the map. They weren't in a text he recognized, but after a few moments they seemed to twitch into a new shape that made sense to him. "Insha?" he asked Toki, after a moment, sounding out the word carefully.
The Aoide paused, then shook his head.
Tian Yue sighed. "Isn't there something else that would work?"
"Lord Knowledge does not appear to be present, presently," Toki replied, looking down at his hands. "I am sure he would know-"
"I can't just wait and do nothing," Tian Yue muttered. What they were doing now was hardly efficient, but it was better than sitting on his hands. "Damn your memory."
Toki shrank away a little. "I'm sorry, my Lord..."
"No, no, it's not your fault - I've forgotten enough myself, I can't fault you for not remembering everything." And Toki had been alive for longer than he had, really, having stayed awake and active all through the long eons between the Fading and Tien Lung's rebirth. "Surely there must be something else to jog your memory... a scent, a food..." Scent was supposed to be the best way to evoke memory, wasn't it?
Toki looked glum. "When the Pantheon crumbled down into the mortal realms, we didn't much care where we had ended up," he admitted. "Mere mortal concerns were nothing next to the catastrophe of the Fading."
And all that trauma can't have been good for your mind. Tian Yue carefully turned the next page. "Well. We shall continue until you either recall, or Gianfar makes himself known, or some more important task presents itself."
"Yes, my Lord."
Tian Yue peered at the next name. "Penste?"
"...No, my Lord."
"Damn."
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Posted: Sat Jan 14, 2012 6:01 pm
Solace SongSosiqui It was easy to retrace his flight back to Echo's house. Tian Yue landed and quickly moved out of sight of the windows before shifting to human form; after all, most people's houses weren't set up for the convenience of dragons. He changed quickly into the robe he'd brought, then took a moment to make himself presentable - and to think.
Nergal's vanishing - no, kidnapping, godnapping - was unacceptable, no question about that, but Zhijian needed his aid... yet so did Echo... and he knew which way he would have to go, even if it hurt to have to choose. Their Lord's orders outranked All. Period.
So it wasn't really a choice...
Tian Yue sighed, slipped his feet into the shoes he'd brought, then padded over to knock on Echo's door. If only there was something he could do. It didn't seem right to be a god and yet be so helpless.
Doubtless those still entombed in jewels thought that, if they were capable of such, every day. Zero Dream Things had not been going well. Ishum and the lady had been searching almost never-endingly, following each and every lead they found, one by one. Some seemed to hold some true merit, where worth deeper analysis, but they never seemed to lead them far enough to call it progress.
It was depressing, so see her like this. Depressing and horrible, and most of all he felt completely useless. The mute aoidei didn't seem to be able to do much beside stand at her side. Tempo could at least fight... and Concerto was keeping watch at the pantheon while tending to Love and his daughter. Really, it seemed like there wasn't much he could do.
He perked up as a knock sounded on the door. The goddess was busy... and Tempo had gone with Ishum, this time. He shook his head as if to work himself out of his depressed daze and went to open it. He gave a bow to Tian Yue and gestured him to come inside - after all, he doubted the other knew sign language.
Really, being mute was so bothersome. Sosiqui "Ah... Alto. Is your Lady present?" Tian Yue stepped inside with a solemn nod. Zero Dream The blue aoide nodded, and, after motioning the dragon king to follow him once more, turned and headed deeper into the house, to the second story. He stopped right in front of what looked like a living room of sort and peeked in, knocking on the wall lightly to announce his presence."What it is ?" The voice that answered the sound was Echo's, definitively, but it seemed that something... was missing. The pale form looked up from her perch on the window ledge to see what her confident was signing her. Tian Yue... She was in no fitting mood to receive him, even less in the physical state to do so. She was clothed simply, still covered in dust - probably only recently arrived home, but what was so startling was that she looked so tired. There was no smile on her face, no light in her eyes. She slid off her seat and brushed some of the dust away as she moved to greet him, not as elegantly as she usually did. "It is a pleasure to see you today... Would you like something to drink ?" It sounded genuine, and it was, but there was no joy in her voice. Sosiqui "Echo..." Oh, she looked terrible. And here he was, coming to tell her that he would probably be leaving before too much longer... "I'm sorry if I interrupted anything. I take it... that there has been no news?" he asked, as gently as he could. She looked as though a stray breeze could break her to bits. Zero Dream "You did not." She reassured him. "There are rumors, some which could seem genuine enough, but... they don't seem to lead us too far. They're protecting their tracks, it seems." The goddess let out a low sigh. Everything so far had been in vain...
No wonder dark thoughts came all too easily. But at least... at least she wasn't quite alone in all this. "Of course they are." The was a youth there, with hairs as red as a flame, who had remained silent until now. From his position leaning against the wall, he had been easy enough to overlook. "They are probably well aware enough that if they can be tracked down, they will have quite the welcome comity to go kung-fo gun ho on their happy asses." He muttered, flicking one long bang away from his face.Adrian ! Would you please watch your language ? You are in presence of a dragon king !A what now ? He looked puzzled for a moment, but smoothed out his face quickly. Sosiqui "Of cou-" Tian Yue stopped, surprised, as another voice, an unfamiliar one, mirrored his words and continued to speak. He hadn't noticed the red-haired young man when he entered, so focused had he been on the distraught goddess. "And who is this, Echo? Another companion of yours?" Now that he focused his attention on the newcomer, he could feel power there... no, two kinds of power. Strange, and a little confusing, difficult to isolate. Zero Dream "This is Adrian, host to the Spirit Guide. He... has been very helpful to me lately." The fire mage's sometimes playful antics had been some of the few things that had managed to make her smile, laugh, or otherwise keep her from sinking completely in the last few days.Dragon kings would be... over-gods, if you will, to put it simply. Second only to Harmodius.Ahh. Well that explained both Echo's and Ankou's attitude. But that meant more formalities. Oh bahhh. After further proddings, he gave a bow. "It is an honor to meet you, Lord Tian Yue."
The two kinds of powers seemed to mingle a bit, but it quickly became evident that one was divinity, and the other fire, in lack of a better way to put it. Wild and untamed, beyond what one could expect a simple mage to have control of. Sosiqui "Ah. Nergal's brother." Tian Yue nodded gravely to the host. "Echo mentioned you. I am glad you have found each other. It's too bad we couldn't meet in better times, with better news."
He glanced back at Echo, then took a few steps over towards her. "I am glad to find you with someone else here to support you if you need it. I came to tell you that I will most likely be traveling in the near future. Orders from our Lord must outrank everything else, I am afraid... not that I was very helpful in the first place." He shook his head, sharply. That was still frustrating. It seemed wrong somehow that a god could find out little more than a common creature. Zero Dream "Do not say that..." The goddess also moved closer, and shook her head. "You where there when I desperately needed someone, and that is more than enough..." She had hoped to be able to call for him in the future, but that was not to be. Another hurt among many, so much that she barely even noticed it. Still, he had a point, and she was not mad.
"Where will you be going, then ?" Some of the goddess' curiosity apparently returned, as she tilted her head a bit.Well ?...You should talk for me. Please.It was rather easy to see that Ankou was NOT in the mood to deal with people, and he probably didn't wish to upset the dragon.
"Yeah... I wish there was something I could do about this..." After all, if deities couldn't find a trace, how could he ? Sosiqui "To the remains of the ancient Pantheon, with my brother the Fangbridle, in search of his tack. He must be prepared for our Lord's riding." Where Destruction might wish to ride, and to what end, was largely immaterial at this point. "I hope it won't take too long."
He nodded at Adrian. "You can do exactly what you are now... and here's a nice thought for both of you. Whoever has taken Underworld, they cannot hold a god forever, and the instant they die... the situation will be quite reversed, and on a far more permanent basis." There was absolutely nothing nice in the Dragon's smile. Zero Dream The old pantheon... It still stood ? No, wait, Tian Yue had said remains. And yet, try as she might... Her memories did not stirr. She remembered nothing of the ancient city of the gods, of what must have been her home.
"I hope you will find what you are both looking for." The goddess nodded, her expression somewhat puzzled and probably betraying her thoughts.
"I... do not remember anything. How it looked like. This is upsetting..." She whispered.And that is if I don't get to them first... Ankou added silently. Likewise, the god's tone of voice promised nothing good."I doubt they'll live long after we find them." Adrian added with a nod. "I will burn them to ashes myself, if I have to. It may not be my business yet... it a sense, it kind of is." It was, after all, impossible to ignore, with how close host and god where becoming lately, with how easy it was for one to catch the feelings of the others. He couldn't help but think he didn't have long left. Perhaps he was wrong, or maybe he wasn't, but right now, it didn't matter. Sosiqui "Don't feel bad about it," Tian Yue told Echo firmly. "The realm where the ancient Pantheon once stood has entirely collapsed into the mortal worlds, it seems. It no longer exists in anything like its former glory. We are relying on Toki to help us find it." He offered the goddess a bemused smile. "See how desperate we are?" he joked.
Then he glanced over at Adrian. "Of course it's your business. Really, this sort of thing should be everyone's business. If such a thing could happen to one of us, it could happen to all... though I imagine Lord Harmodius would have something to say about that." The Dragon King was vaguely troubled by his Lord's seeming inaction. But perhaps there wasn't really much danger, or perhaps this was important. There was so much they didn't know. Zero Dream Somehow, this managed to get Echo to crack a smile, if only for a moment. "Wholly desperate indeed, dear dragon. I fear I will not be much help either." The goddess shook her head.
"Perhaps we shall rebuild it, one day." She'd found she did not mind so much living among mortals, but perhaps, sometimes... some place which could only be accessed easily by others of her kind was a good thing. It was all too easy for mortals to stumble onto the new pantheon, but then... That was probably part of the idea.
The mention of the twin crown made her sigh in turn. "There must be a reason... Surely if there where dangers too big, he would intervene..." She could only hope. She didn't know. Had never seen Destruction in this life. Her fragmented memories refused to tell her anything that might be of use.Adrian had shifted to lean against the wall, yellow eyes closing. He was doing his best for Echo, not only because it was what Ankou wanted, but because the goddess honestly did not deserve all this bullshit. He had to make her hold on, until Underworld could be found.
"He would." His voice was level, with no hesitation. Status aside, Tian Yue was pretty easy to talk to... a bit like the goddess herself, actually. Maybe it was why they got along so well. Sosiqui Tian Yue hesitated. "Have you... asked Him? Lord Harmodius, I mean. Even though I am quite certain he would act if Nergal was in danger of his life, perhaps... he might know something? Unless it is something we are not to know. Sometimes one does need to... to handle things on one's own." His tail swayed awkwardly from side to side. Perhaps they were all overreacting, but what if, what if...
But he had to admit that Destruction was not the most approachable of deities. He shook his head. "Now I'm just repeating myself," he said, with a sigh. Zero Dream "I..."
The goddess hesitated, for a moment. She hadn't even let herself think about this. Hadn't allowed herself to think about it, about how it could potentially help. That might have just been the answer, but it... seemed too easy. And too unlikely.
And would that not be too amusing, the little broken child of Creation begging for help ?
"I havn't." She shook her head, as if it would make the thoughts go away.Adrian hadn't moved from his spot, but the fire mage was now watching the goddess with apparent curiosity. Something about Destruction seemed to bother her, but what ? Well, yes, he'd about scared him shitless - the redhead just presumed that it was what the elder god just did, but... she was a goddess, herself. What was bothering her so ?
"If there's no lead soon, I... guess I could try it." Sosiqui That's right... Echo has known Creation. That was not something that Tian Yue had seen, not this incarnation of Tien Lung, though of course there were memories of alabaster skin and delicate, chiming wings.
He nodded at Adrian, then turned back to Music and shook his head. "I wish I could bring you something besides platitudes and ideas you've already thought of. Some solution, some news, some novel idea that would change everything. Such things seem to be in short supply, these days." Zero Dream "It is allright... You must focus on what you need to accomplish right now. We all fight our own battles, no matter the form they take, they are there, somewhere."
A few months ago, it wouldn't have occurred to her to think like this. But now, this seemed true, no matter where she was looking.
"I will find him." Her voice held no doubt nor hesitation. "....But it would be nice to know where to start."
Echo wasn't used to this. She was used to have it easy, if she dared think that way. Perhaps this was why she had always remained there, doing what seemed to be so little in the face of a much bigger problem.
No more."Yeah, they know what the hell they're doing." This got him a prod from Ankou not to blaspheme in front of gods (and that technically hell wasn't as he'd been taught anyway) but he ignored it. If the god focused to prodding him, then he just might stop focusing on brooding. "We went there and we didn't find anything either. Not that we expected to..." He shrugged. "We're hoping the crows will overhear something." Sosiqui "Then you and your master have one up on me. I wish your birds luck in their listening," Tian Yue told Adrian, wryly. That must be convenient.
"Echo..." He turned back to her, then reached out one hand to gingerly squeeze one shoulder. "You will. And if I can, I will throw all my resources into that search - if it is still needed - when I return. Unless my Lord has further use for me..." Zero Dream "You need not to worry." She leaned against him, drawn in by the feel of the hand on her shoulder, smooth even as it belonged to a dragon. The touch of a friend, the comfort of a friend. A little thing, such little things, yet how badly needed at this point of time...
"You need to focus on what you need to do. We shall do the same... and hopefully there will be no need for you to focus on this upon your return." Heavens only knew if she would hold out like this for that long. What the dragon spoke of did not seem like a short journey."Yeah, we'll find him. They'll all be right there when you come back." The pyromancer did not include himself in that statement - there was no bitterness in his voice, but there was some faint, lingering sadness. Sosiqui "I sincerely hope so." He nodded at Adrian, soberly, acknowledging what the host meant underneath the words he spoke. He seemed like a good man, someone the dragon could trust to do well by his friend while he left. "If Toki does not attend us, one of your Aoidei could perhaps send news to him, Echo?" Zero Dream "That would be a great idea." The goddess nodded. "And they could leave a message, if Toki goes along with you." The news would make their way, somehow. "Would either of you like something to drink ?"
She did not feel like the best hostess for now, that was for sure - it should have occurred to her a bit ago...There she went again. She needed so badly to find something to distract herself... "...Some coffee would be nice... But only if Lord Tian Yue wants something too... ?"
Really, he would have taken it upon himself to do it, but it was painfully apparent that the goddess needed something to take her mind off things. Sosiqui Tian Yue smiled. "Of course. Far be it from me to ignore your hospitality! Though I should return to the Pantheon before too long. I have Toki hard at work researching, and the instant he finds something... my brother and I should be off on that trail." Zero Dream She nodded in answer. "Tea, then ? And coffee for the odd one." She said with the slightest smirk as she headed for the kitchen.The pyromancer did not move from his leaning against the wall, but childishly stuck out his tongue. "Not odd !" Sosiqui "Either is fine with me," Tian Yue said, smiling to himself. He remembered Crispin and Shaiming's wars over warm beverages quite well, though the memories were at one remove, and confusing if he thought of them together - for, in a way, he had experienced both of them. At the same time.
Confusing indeed. Zero Dream It did not take long before the goddess returned with a tray full of goodies, and set it on the nearby table for her guests to enjoy.
"There. You two should sit down, you know - I doubt it's that much of a hurry, no ?" Expecially with Toki being rather... scatterbrained... at times. Sosiqui "I think I can spare a moment," Tian Yue said, with a smile. Something in him was antsing to get moving, but he could tell that Echo needed this - a chance to breathe, a moment of distraction.
For now, that was more important. But what to talk about? The only thing he could think of was the journey, or the spectre of Nergal looming both vast and absent in his mind. The journey, then. "Do either of you recall much of the ancient Pantheon? Ankou, perhaps?" Now that Echo seemed a little bit more stable, he felt he could free some attention for the silent god within the redhead. Zero Dream "nothing is really coming back to me..." The goddess shook her head slightly. "There is a feeling of familiarity... I definitively know what you are talking about, but I cannot seem to recall anything... definite. Or useful." She gave a small sigh.The redhead perked a bit, sight leaving the cup of coffee to look over at the dragon. There was a split second pose for some mental communication before there finally was an answer."The city of the gods..." The voice was a bit raw, unused - and clearly not belonging to the host. "I do not think I have lived there, but I remember loosely.... gates. There where many entrances, many ways from outside to inside. I do not know how many, or even how many still stand, and if they would still work.... But.." How... odd, that this would be the first thing to come to his mind. "...So perhaps if the first you find is no longer working... Then there may be others." Sosiqui Tian Yue nodded, slowly. "There is a Gate in the world we're searching for. Even I can barely remember, and I wrapped my coils around that place for how long?" He snorted, self-depreciating. "I remember the canals. The temples. The Tree. Streets and gods, godlings and Aoidei, over and over, world without end..."
He shook his head, clearing the reverie. "Until it did." Zero Dream "We all seem to have some massive memory problems, it does seem." There was a bare hint of amusement in the voice, but it was extremely faint. "But then, that is what entropy does to the soul. It erodes, until nothing, mind and memories and personality, is left. We are all quite lucky, when we look at the big picture, to retain even fragments. I imagine.... that there may be some beyond rebirth, even among ourselves."Adrian really almost couldn't believe this. The god was socializing, going beyond answering the question asked, and he hadn't even needed to prod. There was a faint annoyed streak from the god which proved he had clearly felt those thoughts, and the redhead couldn't help but giggle inwardly.
"But then..." All amusement had faded from his voice by the time he finally spoke. "What about those who arn't... ?"
The body's expression shifted, lips into a tight line. "...I can only hope the end beyond the end was not painful."The goddess listened, in despite not liking what she was hearing. Of course it was believable that not all of them would make it... But she did not like to think about it. How many of those would be friends, lost not only in memory but in complete truth ? What about the holes in her memories, would these ever be truly filled again ?
How much was simply hidden, waiting for the right time to manifest - how much was truly lost forever, eroded by nothingness as the spirit guide spoke ?
She did not know, and perhaps it was better that way. The past was the past, and it was better to focus on the future. She knew that, and yet...
Yet she couldn't stop wondering. And clinging to it. Sosiqui "This is true, no doubt," Tian Yue said soberly, taking a sip of his coffee before returning his attention to Ankou. "I fear that Futs Lung-" He cut himself off, then shook his head. "But surely the Dragon Kings, if any, would survive and grow strong. We cannot lose any of my brothers." His grip on the coffee mug tightened. Zero Dream "Surely. The mana is stronger in the dragons, so ill'd expect..." The god trailed off. "Has something happened to him ?" Surely there would not be a worry unless something had.Likewise, there was a worried look on the goddess' face, and, wordlessly, she slid one hand on his shoulders to show her own support. "He will be fine, no matter what... I am sure of it." Sosiqui "The host was not strong enough; the gem recovered from mortal dust. Last I heard." Tian Yue sighed. "But surely Lord Harmodius will do his utmost, Destruction or no."
He gave the pair a wan smile. "So much for bringing cheery news, but when the Fangbridle and I have returned - we will find better. Or, failing that, make better." He took another long sip of the coffee. Zero Dream "Oh... Im sorry." Echo whispered. That was horrible... "Yes... I am sure all will be fine, still. If there is enough of his mana left, something will be done." Destruction or not, she doubted He would let any of them down... Even less one of His dragons.Holy... That can happen ?Undoubtedly. Individuals able to rebirth a dragon must be few and far in between.But...There's no need to worry. He tried to sound as comforting as possible, but probably was not very convincing. I will not let your sacrifice be in vain. If it somehow happen, then I better not get yet a third chance.
All the span of a second. There was worry on the boy's face, which did not quite match the voice that came out of his mouth. "That is indeed unfortunate... I wish him well. I have no doubt that some of his mana survived where the host did not."
It just seemed like a waste - a useless death without a result. An individual who was completely, mind, body and soul, destroyed for what came out to be nothing at all.
The thought caught Ankou off-guard - he had no idea why he felt so strongly toward this, but he masked it from his host well. Sosiqui Tian Yue smiled knowingly at the red-haired host. "I was afraid of the same thing," he said, quietly. "When my name was Crispin and the Dragon merely a voice in our mind. But it did not happen."
He looked over to Echo. "We can only hope - but there is much of that. It survives quite well even in this day and age, if only someone will give it an opening." Zero Dream "That is true... Well, if I hear anything about him, I will have news delivered to Toki ?" This might be hard, as she was doing quite a good job at completely ignoring the pantheon and either being walled like an hermit, or being gods-knew-where searching for a clue, any clue... But maybe. She would keep her ears open.Adrian had what seemed to be the most priceless face for a moment while he processed that one.
...I can't tell if he's lucky or not lucky, really.And Ankou couldn't help but be a bit fascinated by this revelation. That would have been an interesting thing to see for himself, but alas.
"He has nothing to fear. I've disturbed quite enough to have it all end as such." There was an undertone of something in the deity's voice... sadness ? Guilt ? It wasn't very easy to identify, and it left as quickly as it came. Sosiqui Tian Yue nodded to Adrian/Ankou. "No doubt of that. I am certain now that any amicable bonding cannot possibly end in that way." He grinned, then drained the last bit of coffee from the mug before turning his attention to Echo.
"That would be excellent, if you can spare a messenger. I believe Toki will remain behind, unless we absolutely must have him, but - er, he doesn't know that. Yet." The Dragon King looked faintly, comically guilty for a moment. Zero Dream First Adrian, and now Tian Yue. It was hard to keep on sulking with those kind of expressions, so the goddess couldn't help but give an amused smile. "I can spare the messenger, I am pretty sure. Concerto is at the pantheon quite often, tending to Rio and his daughter. That will not be any trouble."Amicable... That would not have been the first word to pop in the god's mind, but perhaps it was indeed so. He did manage quite well, no, they did manage quite well to not constantly be at each other's throat in despite of how messy this all started."It's only amicable when he's not being dumb." Adrian chirped, more than sick of the awkward atmosphere and more than ready to do something about it. Looking like quite the smartass indeed (hopefully proving he was not quite serious), he went to finish his own cup.Ankou grumbled a bit, but soon radiated smugness. You seem to be quite skilled at that - do you have prior experience with your own mental speech, dear ?That, coming from Ankou, along with the god's tone of voice, came completely out of the left field, which was the main reason for the redhead choking on his drink, not the god's lack of being remotely skilled at humor. "Augh ! Deloyal tactics !" Sosiqui A smile quirked on Tian Yue's lips, the Dragon King pleased both at Echo's improved mood and at the interplay between Adrian and Ankou -something he remembered fondly, if a bit strangely. The double-sided memories from that time when Crispin and Shaiming had been together but separate were an odd bunch indeed.
"Be that as it may... I should be going," he said, and was surprised to find himself regretting that fact. "Any moment the page with the answer could be turned." Zero Dream He probably should have gotten going, too, before Lyra and Jinx started to wonder where he went, since what was supposed to be a simple drop by to make sure the goddess was okay had evolved into a longer stay, but he was not ready to leave the goddess alone just yet. He knew too well that her somber mood would be quick to return once she would be left alone with her thoughts."Of course... I have held you way too long already. Hopefully the answer will be found soon, and then you can get going..." Echo worked herself back on her feet to lead him outside. "I wish you the best of luck, my friend." Sosiqui "And I wish you the same," Tian Yue said quietly, tilting his head down to place a chaste kiss on her forehead - knowing she would not misinterpret the gesture. "Be safe, as the Worldshield commands." There was a certain power in the benediction, an ancient echo of words said countless times when the world was much younger.
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Posted: Sat Jan 14, 2012 6:02 pm
Sometimes Fortune Smiles
We will be leaving in the near future. Right. Tian Yue rolled his eyes at his own optimism. It had seemed the right thing to say, and he did owe Echo a truthful explanation for why he was searching through books instead of looking for lost Underworld, and Lord Harmodius' wishes did indeed outrank all other concerns...
... but the stack of books never got any smaller, not in the least, and Toki's blank stares could go on into eternity. Perhaps the world would crumble away into bits and they would still be there, reading off names of places long dead, blank and unrecognizing every time.
It was taking its toll on Toki, that much was clear; every 'wrong' name made the Aoide droop more and more. He probably would have oozed down into the floor itself if it were possible. "Please continue, my Lord," he said, trying to be cheerful and largely failing.
Tian Yue merely nodded and turned yet another page. "Cha'as'kaa."
"... No."
Pageflip. "Tan'na'sak."
"... No."
Pageflip. "Pan'ka'tha."
"... No."
Pageflip. "The'ta'naa."
Pageflip. "Men'pa'kas."
He had turned another page, automatically, before he realized that Toki hadn't actually said anything. Tian Yue glanced up at the Aoide. Toki was sitting perfectly still, his eyes unfocused, his mouth open slightly in a vague 'o' of surprise.
"Toki?" Tian Yue breathed, hardly daring to hope.
"I... I remember... they had feathers, talons, like birds... so soft, so delicate against the snow... yet bound to earth rather than sky... they did not understand, when..." Toki's words were quiet, as if coming from a long way off. "I did not deal with them... yes, yes... The'ta'naa." His face suddenly cleared, the soft look of memory replaced with a bright joy. "I remember! I remember, my Lord! The place where I fell was The'ta'naa!"
"Excellent - well done, Toki," Tian Yue said, showering the Aoide with effusive praise while his brain went into overdrive. They had the name. No means to get there, not yet, but the name, the destination -
No more books -
"I must tell Zhijian at once. Please, put the other books back and wait for me in my chamber." He grabbed the book and marked the place with a dusty leather strip, then jumped to his feet. There was no time to waste! He heard Toki's acknowledgment only dimly as he clutched the book to his chest and darted out of the room.
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