Alicanthus

This dragon was once a traveller. He was taken and sold on without permission by one of the last to have him, and part of his story went missing, but he was found, and has finally come back home.
(Monday 12th Sept 1:13am NZST)


Alicanthus, or Ali for short, was found by Mama Rose, a kindly, if a little insane, wildclaw. She led him back to Clan Haruelle and there he was supposed to stay. However, a proud Tundra wanderer by the name of IceKing sparked his interest to see the world with his tales of the many clans he had stayed with. And so, Ali is off to see and learn what he can from the world, and he especially wants to see the Viridian Labyrinth some day.

---

There is a ferry that comes by every so often. It stills by the edge of the Emberglow Hearth, and it stays for nearly a week before it leaves again. Alicanthus saves his treasure for a week to pay the fee, and when the masked ferrydragon asks after his parents, he says he doesn't have any, ignoring the pang of guilt in his chest as he thought of Mama Rose.

There's a Fae on board whose voice sounds like a warm summer breeze, who asks him where he's going.

"Anywhere," Alicanthus says, "I just want to see the world."

They took him across the Sea of a Thousand Currents and he saw so many, wonderful, wonderful things. The colorful maren, the water dulled sights of the clans below the surface, Ali drank in their sights like a dragon parched, mesmerized by the sights.

One day, they ask him what he knows of their next destination, the Tangled Wood.

The name alone brings all sorts of images to mind. Flickering shadows, cackles in the dark, an ever changing landscape that would swallow up dragons and spit them out gods know where...

They told him that the fastest way to the Viridian Labyrinth was through their route, and it would do him some good to rest a little at the clan they were stopping by, so he agreed, albeit a bit reluctantly.

...

The shadows clung to him like a second skin by the time he left the flight. They licked at his ankles and moved even when he was sitting still.

As he took the ferry away, all Ali could think was how badly the light hurt his eyes.

---

Ali found himself next in a water Clan, that, unlike most water dragons, didn't live beneath the surface of the ocean. Instead, they lived on boats. This Clan considered themselves very open to Wandering dragons, and during his stay with them, Ali met many other Wandering dragons, who gave him many pieces of advice--not all of them helpful.
For all of their travels, not a single dragon had ever heard of the Viridian Labyrinth, much less been there. Even though the dragons of this clan weren't exactly helpful, Ali found himself smitten with their way of life. He ended up staying with them far longer than he'd ever intended. His eyes never fully recovered from his time in the Tangled Wood, despite Pebble, the healer's, best efforts. She told him that his eyesight would slowly deteriorate until he went completely blind. He was gifted a burlap hood to help shield his eyes, and hopefully, give him more time to see. Finally, as winter approached, Ali decided to leave. If he didn't, he would have to stay all winter. For Ali, that was too long to wait to continue his adventure. As he flew off, he looked at everything with a new appreciation, knowing that, one day, he wouldn't be able to see it at all.

---

The sun was hurting Ali's eyes as he flew through the sky. He needed a place to land. He spotted a medium sized clan and headed for it. He had never been to the wind territory before, and couldn't wait to see it for probably the first and last time.

Or so he thought.

When he landed he was greeted kindly by a Coatl named Quetzel, who was carrying herbs and different plants. Ali asked him if he was a healer. Quetzel said he wasn't but his mate, Corbel, is the best healer in all the flights, and that she's never failed a patient. This gave Ali hope, she could help his eyesight! Quetzel led Ali to the healer's den, carrying the supplies in his tiny arms. Corbel greeted him with a loving hum and nuzzle. She looked over to Ali and squinted ever so slightly, "Your eyes are failing."

Ali nodded sadly and looked away, embarrassed. Was it really that obvious? Corbel turned his head to look at her, with her tail, and examined his eyes. She went back to the supplies she had, next to a Leafy Moth he assumed to be her familiar. She came back and puffed some dust in his face. Ali jumped back, his eyes burning from the powder mixture that was now in his eyes. The Leafy Moth led him to a nest. He laid down, blinded. The pain soon faded, and he tentatively opened his eyes, expecting to be completely blind. But, he had the opposite. His vision was clear, his eyes didn't hurt. He tilted his head back and let the hood fall. He couldn't believe it! He could see, just as he did when he began his journey moons ago. He turned to thank the Coatl pair, but they had gone. He noticed in a gem he had a harsh line from the sun never hitting his head. So he pulled the hood back up for appearance purposes and left the clan. Excited to see the world, for real this time.

As he entered his new clan, he was amazed at what he saw! There were large snappers everywhere and of all colors. He had never seen so many snappers in one place before. He introduced himself to the largest of the snappers, Bramble, who took him under her wing and looked after him. Bramble introduced him to the rest of the clan and promised him that while he was here he would be safe. They feasted on the finest food in the land and he played games with the snappers. He enjoyed his time here but knew one day it would come to an end and he would have to leave for the next home.

---

After a long, exhausting flight over mysterious lands, Ali finally arrived at a small clan in the middle of the Crystalspine Reaches. His precious hood was in tatters and he noticed strange spots all over his body. But the clan was full of welcoming Guardians and Alicanthus soon realized that he didn't need to hide behind the hood anymore.

One of the female Guardians was especially kind to him. Arathana nursed him back to health and took good care of him. She found Ali's spots beautiful. Ali found himself falling for the other dragon's charms. She might not have been the most stunning dragon but Ali couldn't care less. While taking care of a nest with her, he briefly considered staying for good. But ultimately Alicanthus' wanderlust won out and he decided he hadn't seen enough of the world yet.

---

Alicanthus arrived at Clan Dream Song right before Mistral Jamboree. He enjoyed trying to find chests while scavenging and fighting in the coliseum. Ali was going to leave but heard there was a birthday coming up in the clan which coincided with Wavecrest Saturnalia. He stayed and enjoyed the festivities. Ali got caught up in spending time with his new friends and before he knew it, it was time for Greenskeeper Gathering. During the Gathering, Ali was told that some dragons from the clan were going on a road trip. He decided to join them and had much fun as they traveled all over Sornieth. Ali decided to rest for a few weeks before traveling on to a new clan. He's hoping to get there before Brightshine Jubilee. Cresendo gave Ali a brown fez as a parting gift.

---

[This part of Ali's journal is tattered and stained, and the words are hard to make out. You think there might be pages missing too...]

---

Alicanthus was feeling dreadfully homesick. He'd woken to find himself in an unfamiliar lair, with no recollection of how he'd gotten there. However, a young pearlcatcher was standing before him. "You're Alicanthus, right? I'm Pearl. Imaginative, I know. I've come to bring you home."

Pearl explained briefly that a lot had happened since Alicanthus left. Mama Rose had since moved the clan to the plaguelands, and was now a respected matriarch of a reasonable troop of dragons, but the quirky old wildclaw had never forgotten her foundling guardian, or stopped waiting for him to come home.

Alicanthus felt guilty realising he'd worried his mama so, but was filled with new hope thanks to Pearl. He seemed to have lost his items along the way, though he dimly recalled a hood and some kind of jacket... having no items to bring along, he simply followed Pearl as she led the way back. He was a lot larger than Pearl, and had to be mindful not to fly too close, or too fast.

At last, they arrived on the outskirts of Mama Rose's territory, and landed. Pearl told Alicanthus to wait there, and she scurried off, returning a small while later with a soft pink wildclaw.

Mama Rose smiled knowingly at once, recognising him instantly despite how the time had changed him. "Oh Ali mah sweet lad, ye've come home." Her eyes shone with joyous tears, much the same as Ali's own.

He lowered his massive head to her, nuzzling her gently. "I'm sorry I've been away so long Mama. But I'll never leave again, I promise."

Mama patted his nose fondly. "Don't you worry, I knew ye'd come back. Ye've made me very proud, what a fine dragon ye've become. Follow us back laddie, Mama wants ta hear all about it."

---

Soon after arriving, the forgemaster Gregorian created a set of specialised armor for Alicanthus. Goggles to shield his eyes, which had been severely damaged when he'd moved to the lands of a Light flight, right after a long time in the Tangled Woods. Braces to strengthen his tired wings, and support his paws. And lastly a vest. More for style than anything else.

A week later, after noticing Alicanthus bumping into things, and dragons, a young fae named Lady gifted Ali with a maine coone named Toby, at his mothers suggestion. They worked together to train the cat as a guide animal, and Alicanthus and Toby are now inseperable.