Quests & Challenges

Happy birthday!
I feel bad for Eilian, but I knew something like that was coming. Rip, poor boy.
But at least Einar's met them now. :3

I KNOW I'M LATE BUT HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

Wow, Eshan and Amosis sure aren't getting a break... Out of what, 4 children(?) they only have one survivor? That was some good plot and writing though, the timing was fantastic. I was wondering a) when his shade would kick in and b) what would happen when Einar met Eilian.

[b][i]Day One Hundred Thirty Four:[/i][/b] “Father?” “Yes?” “What happened to my brother?” Amosis turned to look at Alkaios, who met his gaze with eyes that held their usual inquisitiveness, but not their usual cheer. When they had regrouped with the rest of the Shadowbound, it was with two half-dead creatures, wounded dragons, and word of Eilian’s death. The adults had already discussed what had happened, but the youngest had only been told a very brief summary of the events with a promise that they would be told more later. Amosis had been dreading this though he knew it was inevitable, and Ehsan was in no condition to help him. She hadn’t spoken a word since they had left that fated clearing, her eyes hollow with pain and shock. They had just lost another of their offspring, and now Amosis had to explain his absence to the one they had left. He took a long breath, slowly twirling his pearl in his claw as he thought of a response. “… He… was sick. Not-“ He hesitated, swallowing. “… Not like any regular illness. It was… untreatable, and it made him… bad.” “Bad?” Alkaios echoed, eyes widening in surprise. “How bad? He didn’t seem bad…” “It made him do… terrible things,” Amosis tried to explain. “Things he tried to hide from us, until-“ “… Until what?” his son asked after waiting for a beat. The Pearlcatcher took another breath. “… Until what happened yesterday.” “They were attacked?” Alkaios inquired. It hurt to hear the fear in his small voice. “What attacked them? No one else would tell me.” Amosis flinched. After several moments of deliberation, he answered, “… They were attacked by… the Shade.” Alkaios shuddered. “Tremayne says the Shade is really bad,” he mumbled. “They’re right,” the Pearlcatcher replied quietly. “And… the Shade. It killed Eilian?” Amosis had been quietly hoping to avoid [i]that [/i]particular matter, but now that the question was posed to him, he could no longer avoid it. He struggled with himself for some time before he even considered answering. “… Yes,” he eventually said. Even though Alkaios seemed satisfied with that response, Amosis knew it was not quite true. But how could he be expected to explain the nature of Eilian’s possessed state? How could he tell him that their newest member was the one responsible for the killing blow? Alkaios keened quietly in the back of his throat which solidified Amosis’s resolve. No; the young dragon was in enough pain as it was. He didn’t need any more. “Hey,” Bramble’s voice joined them and Amosis lifted his gaze to see the green Spiral twisting in the air above them. “Dinner’s about ready; can you get Ehsan?” “Yes, thank you,” Amosis nodded, and Bramble zipped away. The Pearlcatcher sent Alkaios after him and moved to his and Ehsan’s shared tent. She was huddled inside, as she had been for the past day. He moved in and reached out first with his wing to brush against hers to alert her to his presence, then gently rubbed his muzzle along her neck. “Come on, Ehsan,” he murmured softly. “Please. Food is ready.” It was a beat before she moved, slowly uncurling herself from her place. He backed out to give her room and she emerged from the tent. She hardly even looked at him when he took her under his wing and lead her over to the fireside. He sat there pensively beside her, but didn’t join in the conversation with the others. He was too worried over Ehsan, making sure she got her food and was actually eating it. Overhead, he heard Blithe call out, “Hey, Einar; what do you eat?” “Meat is fine,” the Gaoler answered from a short distance away. “Alright. Come and get it then,” Blithe motioned him over. Einar moved to do so, coming close to where Amosis and Ehsan were sitting. The instant he stepped into Ehsan’s line of sight, she suddenly jumped alert and snarled savagely at the Gaoler. Amosis flinched away from her in surprise. He’d [i]never [/i]seen her like this before. Einar himself paused and turned to look at her, watching her warily. “Ehsan!” Capricious exclaimed in both startlement and in reprimand. “It’s alright, he’s not our enemy-“ “[i]Keep out of my sight[/i],” the Mirror hissed venomously at Einar, ignoring the Fae entirely. Einar remained unperturbed, merely nodding to her and quietly walking on to take his food. As to her wishes though, he continued on until he moved past the circle of tents to settle down on the other side where they couldn’t see him. Only once the tip of his horns disappeared did Ehsan finally relax, falling back in to her sunken state. The rest of the camp resumed their activities, though in a somewhat subdued manner. Amosis, however, was afraid to take his eyes off his mate. With pain he realized he didn’t recognize the dragon before him; he didn’t know what she would do right now and it frightened him. He turned back to his food eventually, his mind whirring with anxiety. If she continued on like this, he would have to approach her about it, but how? That night, he lay next to her, quietly listening to her breathing. She had woken up a couple times crying, her sobs shaking him from his own rest. He had done what he could to comfort her enough to drift off again, but he lay awake feeling worried and helpless. He didn’t know what to do, and he could only hope that whatever he did wouldn’t be too late. ----- [item=ancient fungus spores] This poor family. And I thought Blithe and Capricious had it bad. Anyway, I wanted to say thank you to everyone for your birthday wishes~! I appreciate you all and your feedback on the 'locke and just, you know. You guys being you~. ----- Inventory: Scatter Scroll x1, Breed Change x1, Apparel Pull x2 ----- @Weredogalism @Riff @Skulljester @AstralDragons @MisterMylez @BarbaraFett @PinkyDaPinkSlime @loser @OneRingOfPower @MagmaticMachine @Rosesinger @chewynoodles @FallenEclipse @Eversnow Yeah, I do appreciate Pink trying to be nice on my birthday. I just wasn't as careful as I should have been with it [emoji=ridgeback sad size=1]. @Midwinter Yes! He finally joins the party! @Dachshund59 Poor, poor Eilian. Twas not meant to be. @Petall Lol no worries! And yeah, they've had 4, and now Alkaios is the only one. And yep, I was waiting for a good opportunity to expose him (though let's be honest, I wasn't really subtle about it lol). It's funny, because I had ideas for someone getting possessed before Gaolers were a thing, and then their lore just fit right in to everything I was planning. That's why I'm not sorry for exploiting a loophole to get a Gaoler in the story [emoji=ridgeback tongue size=1]. [size=2]I mean, I didn't exploit any loopholes, what are you talking about.[/size]

My heart is breaking for Eshan... I hope she's able to recover from this, and I hope above all that nothing ever happens to Alkaios, because I fear Eshan wouldn't be able to take it!

It hurts extra knowing Sebastian didn't exactly have a good fate in my Pinkerlocke either...

Awww no Eshan, she really isn't taking it well is she. Hopefully Amosis can talk to her and help her with her grief eventually.

Uh oh... I hope Ehsan is ok, poor baby ;-;

[b][i]Day One Hundred Thirty Five:[/i][/b] [center][url=http://flightrising.com/main.php?dragon=2790095][img]http://flightrising.com/rendern/coliseum/battlesprites/27901/2790095.png[/img][/url][/center] When Icnoyotl entered Roksana’s study, it was to find her at her desk with her head in her claws. It looked like she had been there for quite some time, given evidence by the cooled cup of tea and plate of food that sat forgotten and placed in a way that told him someone else had put them there. She at least looked up at the sound of the closing door, and she offered him a brave, if unfelt smile. [center][url=http://flightrising.com/main.php?dragon=2971054][img]http://flightrising.com/rendern/coliseum/battlesprites/29711/2971054.png[/img][/url][/center] “Hello, friend,” she murmured, motioning for him to take a seat. “Is there something I can do for you?” “No,” he answered, settling down in a chair. “I just came to check on you.” She scoffed lightly at his words, but before she could politely dismiss him, he added, “I am here as your friend, not as your doctor, but both would tell you that it is best to talk about what is happening rather than bottle it up.” She still hesitated, so he continued to say, “Normally, I would leave the matter to you, but these particular circumstances are different. They involve your Charge; I need to know where your head is at.” Roksana let out a long sigh, quietly playing with an object on her desk with one claw. Icnoyotl identified it as the mushroom Spellbinder and her lab partners had presented her with, though it no longer held its signature glowing quality. It was some time before the Guardian spoke, but she finally said, “The clan has split, Icnoyotl. You know it has. Almost right in two.” She took a ragged breath, barely keeping herself composed. “Those who will move back to the Tangled Wood have agreed to stay for the time being in the event Spellbinder’s experiments prove successful, but how long will that last? How long until they- until they’re gone?” “You know they would never do anything to harm you,” he said gently. “Their wish return to the Tangled Wood is strong, but they will not leave until they know you are ready for it. That is why they stay. However, I do have to ask; would you not go with them?” “I have already said before that I must remain here,” she told him. “In a discussion we had months ago, now.” “At the time, there were only three dragons making the journey,” he reminded her. “Three dragons that we knew would not remain with Duskhollow.” “Perhaps not, but I still felt connected with them,” Roksana pressed. “I still [i]feel [/i]connected with them.” “Because they carry the key to Duskhollow’s future?” She looked up at him sharply in alarm, and he confessed, “Flow told me of what she foretold. We have not told the rest of the clan as to your discretion, but she wished to confide it in me. In that knowledge, I would ask you to consider; given our hunch is correct, and the delivery of this key to the Tangled Wood allows us to create a portal that grants us the ability to travel between here and there freely, would you not retake residence in the Wood?” “… Yes,” she answered. “That is why I agreed to let Spellbinder perform her experiments in the first place. But I still don’t know if it was the right choice.” “A choice you wouldn’t have made had three young dragons who were barely here for a month not left such an impression on the Haven that they split it in half,” Icnoyotl mused. “All because they decided to embark on a journey back to where Duskhollow began without even knowing its significance.” When she still seemed unconvinced, he murmured, “Roksana, it may be bold of me to assume to know the will of the deities, but does it not seem like the Shadowbinder is calling you home?” His words stirred a memory inside of her. She recalled when she had been on her Search so long ago, how she felt she had been wandering aimlessly until one day, that abruptly changed. She remembered the feeling, like following a familiar trail though she had never been in the region before. How that mere feeling led her straight to a Mirror dying in a pool of mud and murk, how it told her to nurse him back to health, how it led her to the Coatl sitting before her, and to the others that came after. She latched onto that sense and compared it with the present. After a beat she shook her head, though a smile played on her lips. “How do you always know?” He shrugged amiably, replying, “I know how strong your connection to the Shadowbinder is. I suppose I’m just good at seeing it.” She chuckled lightly, but the smile quickly faded from her features as she looked back down at her desk. She had just been finished pulling the data from the last scarab Asnofre had sent her, and the news was… Icnoyotl caught on to her expression and he asked, “What is it?” “… Those three dragons,” she murmured. “They’ve made it to the Sunbeam Ruins. Not only that, they’ve also managed to build up their own small clan.” “… That sounds good,” he replied slowly, confused. She took a breath, smoothing out the papers before her. “It would, but… oh, Icnoyotl.” She had to take another moment to calm herself, but she could still only get out, “Eleven.” “… Eleven?” the Coatl prompted, no wiser than he was before. “Eleven… members?” “No,” she choked. “Eleven [i]graves[/i].” He had a moment to absorb the situation as she sobbed into one claw, leaving heavily against her desk. She managed to gasp out, “I shouldn’t have let them leave.” “This isn’t your fault,” he said soothingly. “This is- the news is terrible, but I believe it’s all for a purpose-“ “I knew someone would die,” she croaked. “I just knew. I could feel death around them, and I did nothing-“ “Roksana, [i]please[/i],” he interrupted her, humming out some notes to a lullaby in his native tongue. Eventually she calmed, and once she was breathing regularly again, he reiterated, “It is all for a purpose.” “How can you be sure?” she questioned. “… Despite what some say, uncertainty is not all we have,” he said at length. “You know what the other thing is; I know you do.” She nodded, and he murmured, “Say it.” It took her a few moments, but she finally drew herself up and responded in a still shaking voice. “Faith.” ----- [item=intricate weaving] Apparently this is the 'locke where I just break Guardians. I feel like such a jerk [emoji=ridgeback sad size=1]. Anyway, a little peek back at Duskhollow that I've been meaning to write around this time. Felt like a good place to put it. Also, the death count is actually 13 (including Daimhín and Iuitl), but neither Xihuitl or Galio had graves, so Asnofre wouldn't have found them. In case anyone was wondering. Oh yeah, and guess what the Coli gave me today when I was training up other dergs! [item=unhatched shadow egg] [size=2]I think Shadowbinder is trying to tell me something...[/size] And now I have [i]another[/i] breed change to backlog. (Not that I'm complaining; I rather like having them on hand whenever I get G1s.) ----- Inventory: Scatter Scroll x1, Breed Change x2, Apparel Pull x2 ----- @Weredogalism @Riff @Skulljester @AstralDragons @Petall @MisterMylez @BarbaraFett @PinkyDaPinkSlime @loser @OneRingOfPower @MagmaticMachine @Rosesinger @Eversnow @chewynoodles @FallenEclipse @Dachshund59 @Midwinter

Aww, poor Roksana. ;-;
This is all so interesting! :o

I love reading the parts about your clan! Poor Roksana, having a whole clan as a charge must be difficult.

THIS WAS SUCH A GREAT CHAPTER!!! I loved the focus on faith oh my goodness that is one of my favourite themes!!! It's cool how this band of travelers have come to mean so much and how they are still influencing the clan back home!