Welcome to Gaia! ::

Sam returned home from Serenia empty-handed, much to the bliss of his clan-mates. Most of them were still getting used to the Dactyl, so even there mere thought of a Vlidean calling their clan home was absurd, especially after one of the little beasts had terrorized them... The brown Drakein had to admit that he was disappointed in their closed-mindedness. The Magescians let a wide assortment of pets and familiars in their homes! Why couldn't he...? Sam could only sigh in dejection as he lay in his cave. After so much running around, he really was starting to get pretty exhausted. It would be nice to spend a little while in his own territory, relaxing, snacking on his favorite foods, spending some time with his clan mates. He looked out over to where Crowell's lair was. Mayhaps he'd take the little one out with him today.

Yeah! That could be fun! Sam rose to his claws and kicked from his lair, gliding down to the Keindred's cave. The whole family was present today. Nigerey was in the back, laying on her side snoozing. Crowell was playing with his Dactyl. The little creature kept just out of reach as the Keindred tried to pounce on him. Sam was pleased to see that the Dactyl wasn't making it impossible for Crowell to catch him. He stayed close to the ground, occasionally waddling comically out of the young Drakein's grasp.

Samael chuckled warmly, alerting the group to his presence. The Dactyl let out a chirp at seeing him and ruffled its membranous wings. "I hope I'm not interrupting." Sam said warmly as he gazed around. Nigerey stirred briefly, but not enough to greet him. Which was perfectly fine by Sam. the less she knew, the better. She'd probably never let Crowell go out with him, so... this was for the best.

The bigger Drakein leaned down to the youngsters level, casting a weary eye at Crowell's mother. "Want to go do something fun today?" He whispered quietly, doing his best not to alarm the sleeping lady. Crowell's eyes lit up and he bounced over to Samael, though the little one knew all too well that waking his mother would get them all in trouble, even if they hadn't done anything yet. Of course she said it was because she loved him and wanted to protect him, but Crowell could simply not wrap his mind around the idea. It was incredibly foolish.

So, the young Keindred eagerly followed after Samael. The two of them had to climb carefully down into the valley, since Crowell couldn't fly, and he wasn't one for asking for help. But once they got to the bottom, they were just fine walking. And all the better for it too, since there were plenty of tasty snacks creeping around down here! The two of them sauntered along, with the Dactyl following behind, jumping from one side of the gorge to the other playfully, its talons scraping against the rocks. Occasionally, Sam would pounce on a small creature to show Crowell "how it was done." Then the Keindred would give it a shot. He wasn't necessarily bad at pouncing... He just wasn't very sneaky.

They wandered for quite some time, until Sam noticed a substantial shift in the weather... It was hot. And looking up revealed dark, smoky wisps... They'd come all the way to the volcano...? That was quite a walking distance for someone so young as Crowell... Hopefully, they'd make it back before he was too worn out. "Ready to head home?" Sam asked as he stifled a yawn. The youngster looked up at him, looking satisfied and tired. he nodded, and the two set off.

But a shadow crossed their path before they'd hardly gone a yard. When Sam looked up, he saw nothing, but that didn't quell the uneasiness in his belly. He ushered Crowell closer to him, but didn't say anything that would alarm his small companion. It was when the Dactyl shrieked and dove for them, followed closely by a set of large snapping jaws that Sam knew they were in trouble.

The Firani swooped down, determined to capture the fleeing Dactyl, but Sam would not allow that after all the work he'd gone through to capture it! Roaring, he hurled a large boulder toward the beast, blocking its path to its meal. It turned on Sam with a snarl. Angrily, Sam shot columns of earth from teh ground, impaling the Firani right through the belly. The Dactyl circled them and fluttered down to Crowell.

Disappointed hissing drew Sam's attention away, and he spotted two more of the beasts within the rocks. The bared their teeth and him and dove. Sam knew he could probably take another one down, but that would still leave one open to possibly attack his young charge! And that... just wouldn't do. He couldn't risk Crowell's life here! Especially since they hadn't told Nigerey of their plans... Sam scooped the little one up between his jaws and kicked into the air, hauling away from the last two beasts as quickly as he could. Crowell squawked indignantly as he was plucked from the ground, but Sam didn't have time for his arguments.

When the Dactyl doubled back to screech and claw at the Dragons, weaving around them to avoid being hit, Sam felt a swell of pride for the small creature. It did its job well. Fortunately, it was able to catch up after too long.

They returned to their territory, where Sam promptly dumped Crowell to the cave floor. Nigerey threw a fit at them, as expected, but the wonder in the youngsters eyes said he hardly listened to her. He'd gotten to see Sam spear a dragon after all! That was pretty cool!