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 Posted: Wed Nov 14, 2007 11:28 pm
 The doorway was covered with waves; serpents danced in the depths, lined in delicate silver filigree. And yet... and yet Tian Yue was unsure.
All Toki had managed to discover indicated that Ti Lung had found a host and dwelled in this place, but unlike the other two Dragon Kings living in the Pantheon, Tian Yue had never seen a single sign of the Lifewater nor his host. For a moment, he imagined finding within something like what Shenlei had seen - a mound, a pile of ash, former host, jewel drained to a bare pulse-flutter within -
No. Not possible. The Waters are not so. Still, the thought drifted around him like a phantom, and Tian Yue at last knocked to dispel it. If Ti Lung was indeed within, then that was one more problem solved. And if not... well, that was one more problem.
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Posted: Thu Nov 15, 2007 2:35 pm
"Come in~!"
The voice was bright and feminine, no undertone of any sinister doings inside. The waves painted on the door rippled like water, and then the doors swung open on hidden hinges with a noise like the crash of waves on distant shores.
Inside, there was a dark-haired figure, standing precariously on the edge of a wicker chaise that looked entirely too delicate to bear her weight, even as small as she was. One of the catgirl Aoidei, this one patterned in patchy calico, was watching her nervously, wringing her hands. She appeared to be keeping up a running litany of 'be careful, liege!' in a quiet voice.
The girl turned her head to glance at Tian Yue, offering him a smile. It was polite, but slightly wary. She seemed perfectly happy to perch on the chaise, fixing the gauzy hangings over it with the nails driven into the wall. "If you'll be a mite patient, I'll be with you in a moment."
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Posted: Thu Nov 15, 2007 7:49 pm
Life! That was a pleasant surprise, and Tian Yue stepped inside with his tail swaying contentedly back and forth under his robes. "Of course," he murmured, bemused as he watched the girl balance and the servant fret.
One feline Aoide (another? how many of them were there, anyway?), one piece of furniture, and one girl. Perhaps not very auspicious, but then again his own transformation and rebirth had truly begun in a broom closet. Ti Lung was already one up from that by virtue of having a room and a chair.
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Posted: Fri Nov 16, 2007 11:08 am
"Thank you." The girl turned back to fixing up the hangings. It took her only a few more moments, and then she carefully hopped down from the chaise. The aoide let out an audible sigh of relief.
The girl was short and petite, but the rolled-up sleeves of her shirt showed toned arms from some sort of exercise. She offered her right hand with her name. As she did, she studied Tian Yue with well-hidden waryness. He was something new and different, which was usually dangerous, but something about the taller man was soothing, protective.
"I'm Auri. That's," she waved her other hand lightly at the aoide. Something in her palm glittered silver. "That's Meena. You are?"
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Posted: Fri Nov 16, 2007 1:32 pm
Tian Yue caught the flash of silver in her hand - and, more importantly, the soft aura of power around it. Kawagiri... The name surfaced from ancient memory, and he knew it was right. "My name is Tian Yue, Dragon King Tien Lung. It is a pleasure to meet you, Auri... and the Dragon King you also bear."
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Posted: Mon Nov 19, 2007 7:14 pm
Auri stared at him, eyes hard for a moment, and she couldn't decide - if he knew this much, if he was what he said he was, then...
You should bow to our brethren, lady. Kawagiri's mental voice was cool and wet in her mind, and her smile changed as he spoke. And she did as he said, and bowed from the waist. He spoke again, and she repeated his words verbatim.
"My thanks and greetings to you, Worldshield and brother. You might forgive my lady and I," and here she sighed before continuing. "We are not settled yet, and the furnishings are not yet suitable for entertaining guests like yourself."
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Posted: Mon Nov 19, 2007 10:17 pm
"Be welcome back to the courts of the Pantheon, brother," Tian Yue replied, his tail wagging back and forth under his robes a bit. "No entertainment is needed - only the assurance that you and yours are well. I have been searching for you for some time."
Then, as to not neglect the host, he added, "It is good to meet your lady, as well. Have you been here long?"
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Posted: Tue Nov 20, 2007 9:25 am
Auri shook her head. "It is a pleasure to meet you, my Lord. Not long at all, in my mind. But Meena says we slept for days, even after she found us. Possibly a week. Possibly more, maybe less. Time seems less important now." She shrugged.
"We have all the time in the world." The voice was deep and soothing, a baritone completely unsuited to his host's petite size. She coughed afterwards, and touched the base of her throat with uncertainty.
Behind her, Meena bounced on the pads of her feet. "Lord! Lord, you speak!" The excitement in the aoide's voice could barely have been any greater.
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Posted: Wed Nov 21, 2007 2:57 pm
A smile quirked on Tian Yue's lips; the Aoide's enthusiastic response was not unlike Toki's own joy when Shaiming had first spoken aloud. "Perhaps... but perhaps not," he said, the smile fading a bit. "I bring word from the Twin Crown; he is Destruction, presently. He seeks his Dragons ranked around him once more. It seemed a matter of some urgency."
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Posted: Sat Nov 24, 2007 11:29 pm
Kawagiri, moving through the girl's body, shook her head. "Our lord is impatient to the end, but his wants we shall obey without question. I am not myself yet..."
Auri's voice replaced his, though she still spoke as the Dragon King. "I shall have to wait... We will have to wait for our return. I am..." She paused. "I, as the vessel of his return, will have to be his voice, if we are to be seated at his feet." But even then, she shook her head. It seemed to be a problem that she couldn't quite fix her personal pronouns - they varied across from singular to plural. "And even speaking for him, I cannot be what he once was - I..." She struggled for words, thinking of how unable she was to explain this to Tian Yue.
Her aoide spoke again, placing her hands on Auri's shoulders from behind. "The fading takes much out of all of us - Lord Tian Yue knows what you mean, my Liege. He understands that my Lord's powers are weak, that my Lady's form still takes precedence." Keen eyes turned to Tian Yue, as if to ask 'isn't that so?'
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Posted: Sun Nov 25, 2007 9:22 pm
"Of course," Tian Yue said, gently, nodding ever-so-slightly at the knowing gaze of the Aoide. "Do not think yourself unsuitable or weak for all that - it is exactly the same for every god. Our rebirths come at a price, and one of them is the time it takes to grow again into power. I may be embodied again, but my power is nowhere near what it once was." He made a face. "Our Lord knows this better than any other; he will not fault you for it."
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Posted: Wed Dec 05, 2007 2:37 pm
Auri nodded slowly. "Thank you, Lord. It's easier to live with it, knowing we all will go through this." Her smile was much warmer now. She liked him, even if she didn't know him. He made the room... less chilled.
"I would really like to ask you a few questions, as you used to be like me. Would you grant me that?" She bounced lightly on the balls of her feet. Inside her head, Kawagiri rumbled a laugh. so impish-impatient. he will not refuse you this, if he is such as I remember... what I remember... His sentences in her head were all jumbled together with images and pictures, never just spoken straight. It was dizzying, but soothing, like leaves flashing by in a brook.
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Posted: Tue Jan 15, 2008 7:16 pm
"Of course - anything, for the host of my brother. " Tian Yue offered her a respectful nod; not obeisance, of course, but the girl was making a sacrifice, as he knew only too well. It was an act worthy of honor and respect, and his thanks.
If only Futs Lung were so lucky. May he be so again.
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