Xavneiros
(#23109166)
Level 1 Guardian
Click or tap to view this dragon in Predict Morphology.
Energy: 50/50
This dragon’s natural inborn element is Wind.
Male Guardian
This dragon is hibernating.
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Personal Style
Apparel
Skin
Scene
Measurements
Length
16.83 m
Wingspan
17.89 m
Weight
10314.69 kg
Genetics
Denim
Ripple
Ripple
Navy
Butterfly
Butterfly
White
Smoke
Smoke
Hatchday
Breed
Eye Type
Level 1 Guardian
EXP: 0 / 245
STR
6
AGI
6
DEF
6
QCK
5
INT
8
VIT
8
MND
6
Biography
[lore by Katalist!
XAVNEIROS
When a blood red guardian came to the clan and asked for him, Xav was shocked. The Guardian had been looking for a partner for his young charge, and he was perfect. When the guardian discussed with the leaders his charge's plight, Xav was keen to go. Apparently the charge, a beautiful fae with cloudy wings, wanted to have hatchlings, but the guardian was ashamed of his bloodlines. Xav would provide the best opportunity at life. Besides, the clan matriarch had just left, and the clan needed someone to watch over the newborns. Xav begged his parents and elders to let him go. When they nodded their heads in agreement, Xav cheered and flew to catch up with his new peer, respected as he was.
The journey was short, but Xav took in the beauty of his surroundings. Every step he took he saw new life, a green lushness that inspired him. On the way he learnt of his new mate, Allegra. The way the stoic guardian went on about her, it was obvious he loved her, and was devastated he couldn't provide her with the children she deserved. Apparently a previous hatch, sired by him, produced disastrous results, with unwanted children. He couldn't do that to his charge anymore, and thus required Xav to help. Xav was more than excited to help, as his charge belonged to her children. He would provide them the life that he was so blessed with.
Sadly she did not feel the same. When he met her, he was taken away at the quiet fae. She was stunning, but when shock shadowed her face, he could see she was unsure. He did not how to feel when she politely excused herself from the conversation, and for lack of a better word, fled. Loren, the guardian was unfazed by her response, and took him to meet his new leaders. They held themselves high, officially welcoming him to their clan. He was taken to the nursery, which held eggs and hatchlings alike. The burning feeling in his heart returned. The hatchlings were beautiful, and the eggs perfect. They all looked like the first egg he touched. Enamoured, Xav thanked the leaders, and proceeded to set to work in the nursery. The hatchlings were cared for in their nursery, but the eggs were alone. Their parents were busy, and their sole attendant, a spiral, was tied up with the hatchlings. Sometimes it looked like the opposite, with the hyperactive spiral interlacing himself, entertaining the hatchlings. Xav enjoyed watching the spiral, named Cynfor, but his eggs were his obsession. They will never come to harm, not whilst he and his Goddess can provide them with the freedom of life they deserved.
Allegra returned to him that evening, shy but dazzling. She had accepted the offer, and wished him luck in his duties as the nursery guardian. She believed in him, and for that Xav was thankful. Together they watched the sun set before she returned to Loren. Xav didn't mind; he was deliriously happy with his life. Everything was good.
And for that he was happy.
Then, came the disaster, the catastrophe, which was Cersei. Life would never be the same. Loren forgot the both of them, Xav and Allegra both. And Cersei nearly cost them their life.
RELATIONSHIPS
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The Egg Guardian
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Resident Of  Mate of Allegra Guardian of the nursery's eggs Collects small things Adores baby animals Proud foster father of Elder  Hatchling letter from Elder   
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These eggs hold the most precious treasure there is.
BIO Xavneiros, Xav for short, is a gentle giant. Working closely with Cherish, the child-minder and hatchery attendant, they take care of the future generation. Xav focuses on the eggs primarily, and like a midwife makes sure their entrance to the world is a safe and easy one, whilst Cherish attends to the hatchlings and plays with them. Xav takes his job of egg keeper very seriously, despite the effeminacy associated with it. He knows his charge is an important one, and the mothers trust his capable paws. Xav has yet to treat an egg or its mother anything but gently. Xav was formerly from The Tribe, a grand Nature clan thriving in the shadow of the Behemoth. There, before Cherish, he was partnered up with a fellow Guardian by the name of Loren, his trusted friend and ally, with whom he guarded the youngest of the clan. Xav found himself in a tricky relationship, as he called it, with a fae named Allegra. Her actual mate, Loren, engineered the match, telling him that his bloodline was more suitable for breeding than Loren's own. But the first time he laid eyes on her, she took his breath away. He couldn't believe his luck. At first Xav didn't mind the breeding arrangement, as eggs were his main focus- though it was a confusing situation- but thankfully Loren didn't mind the questionable intimacy between Xav and his mate, even when it slowly grew closer than a perfunctory 'working relationship'. Allegra often joined them on a slow day in the hatchery, telling him fascinating stories whilst Xav cleaned and incubated the eggs, breathing warm coals into life to bury in the sand around the unattended ones. He loved listening to her stories about his goddess. Xav had a close connection with his Glademother, unlike any other dragon there. The goddess reached out to him personally, before he was born, to take charge of the eggs, and he will follow her to his death. The Glademother is his first true passion; the eggs are his calling, and Allegra is his one true love.   A Place in the Oakheart Clan, by Catkinstarchild Xav's life changed dramatically over the years. A betrayal, a near-death experience, forged bonds not even death itself could break. He and Allegra made a new life, new names for themselves, in a new place called Oakheart, where they could be themselves and be safe from the evils they left behind. They have beautiful children, together and with Huckletree as Allegra's nesting partner, and they raise them with equal love and affection, sending tree-dragon lookalikes in honour of Glademother to serve in clans across Sornieth. Xav is still the egg-guardian of this new clan, Allegra still tends hatchlings, teaches them life skills and tells stories around the fireside, but their hearts are renewed, their hope rekindled, and their eventual retirement can only be as good or better. But for now, it's far off, and they are very much enjoying one another's company and the joy of the moment. STORY Hatched with his tundra brother, Xav found himself in a forest, glistening with just-fallen rain. The sky gleamed, and music was everywhere. It truly was a beautiful day. Suddenly, the trees moved, and took the shape of dragons. They were beautiful, ancient beings to his baby eyes. Giant tree branches graced their shoulders, whilst leaves blew about them. Dappled with their own decorations as well as the trees above, the elders welcomed him to the world, greeting him in their slow, graceful way. Lying at the base of one of the dragon's feet, however, was a small pod, about the size of the dragon's paw. The dragon handed the egg to Xav, explaining the beauty of the world he was born into. Xav's eyes grew wide as he held the egg gingerly. Memories raced through his mind, of a large but gentle dragon, a Goddess. She had granted him this life, as well as the life inside the egg he held. It... was beautiful. He felt a burning in his chest as the leaders continued with their stories. His brother sat and listened to the stories whilst Xav stared at the egg. He was entranced. When the dragon reached out her paw again for the egg, Xav clutched it to his chest and felt it stir. When the dragon insisted, Xav gave it up, but continued to stare. He had found his path in life, minutes after being born. He was to follow the wishes of his goddess, and bring new life to this beautiful world, in Her name. |
The journey was short, but Xav took in the beauty of his surroundings. Every step he took he saw new life, a green lushness that inspired him. On the way he learnt of his new mate, Allegra. The way the stoic guardian went on about her, it was obvious he loved her, and was devastated he couldn't provide her with the children she deserved. Apparently a previous hatch, sired by him, produced disastrous results, with unwanted children. He couldn't do that to his charge anymore, and thus required Xav to help. Xav was more than excited to help, as his charge belonged to her children. He would provide them the life that he was so blessed with.
Sadly she did not feel the same. When he met her, he was taken away at the quiet fae. She was stunning, but when shock shadowed her face, he could see she was unsure. He did not how to feel when she politely excused herself from the conversation, and for lack of a better word, fled. Loren, the guardian was unfazed by her response, and took him to meet his new leaders. They held themselves high, officially welcoming him to their clan. He was taken to the nursery, which held eggs and hatchlings alike. The burning feeling in his heart returned. The hatchlings were beautiful, and the eggs perfect. They all looked like the first egg he touched. Enamoured, Xav thanked the leaders, and proceeded to set to work in the nursery. The hatchlings were cared for in their nursery, but the eggs were alone. Their parents were busy, and their sole attendant, a spiral, was tied up with the hatchlings. Sometimes it looked like the opposite, with the hyperactive spiral interlacing himself, entertaining the hatchlings. Xav enjoyed watching the spiral, named Cynfor, but his eggs were his obsession. They will never come to harm, not whilst he and his Goddess can provide them with the freedom of life they deserved.
Allegra returned to him that evening, shy but dazzling. She had accepted the offer, and wished him luck in his duties as the nursery guardian. She believed in him, and for that Xav was thankful. Together they watched the sun set before she returned to Loren. Xav didn't mind; he was deliriously happy with his life. Everything was good.
And for that he was happy.
Then, came the disaster, the catastrophe, which was Cersei. Life would never be the same. Loren forgot the both of them, Xav and Allegra both. And Cersei nearly cost them their life.
(Further lore by Catkinstarchild)
Cirsei's henchmen tried to ship the big guardian off to be sold on the slave markets, thinking him an unusually docile guardian and thus prime slave material. But though he in despair allowed them to take him away without putting up a fight, thinking the love of his life to be dead, the second he heard Allegra's shrill cries when they brought her aboard the ship, he saw red. He shredded the bars of his cage, fought the henchmen sent to quell him- as the sea turned out into open waters, they barricaded him below decks with everything they had to hand. As if the skies themselves heard his raging, the ship headed directly into a storm. Lightning lashed the ship, waves tossed it about- Xav broke through to the deck in time to watch the cages holding the squalling hatchlings and other slaves, start to slide into the ocean, the crew abandoning ship left and right without a care to their helpless captives. Xav scrambled across the heaving expanse, claws skittering and biting into wood when the ship pitched nearly over- and smashed his way through the cages one by one, calling Allegra's name over and over- taking the doors off with claws hitherto never used for anything more violent than preparing food. In the last, tiniest cage, right at the back, he heard the crying, lifted a filthy blanket, and spied his pale-skinned love cowering there. He freed her, held her tenderly cradled to his heart, oblivious to the maelstrom- but suddenly he heard something crack behind him and the world went dark.
Xav was knocked unconscious by the mast falling and cracking the bow in two. He awoke in the water, floating, with Allegra's tiny hands desperately holding his face above water by his beard, as she perched on a piece of flotsam. Her entreaties to stay awake made him fight the lethargy which would have been his undoing, staying conscious enough to sling one arm and leg over a large piece of floating mast before falling asleep again.
When he woke again properly, they had reached land- for what good it did, because he could barely move, let alone get out of the tidal pool he'd been washed in. He was dead tired, his eyes stung with salt, his body felt pummelled with fists and his claws were broken and bloody from the battle.
Xav's exhausted body could not break free of the mangroves which held him caged, but as the tide rose, it brought back with it a floating white shape in the water, just like a fallen butterfly, and infinitely more heartbreaking in his eyes. Her wings were torn, her body caked in mud and moss from the water's edge; she little resembled the fae he knew and loved, and her chest was still, her eyes glassy as they stared up sightless at the canopy overhead.
His heart broke, and his spirit melted, dripped from his eyes and he keened his heartbreak over the tiny broken body.
Some time after his grief had eclipsed into hollow senselessness, and the water gathered around his waist, as the tide turned- a breeze lifted the leaves in the trees around him, swirled around him, and there was a tangible thought, a voice without a mouth, or perhaps with many, many mouths, of different shapes and kinds. It spoke to him with the voice as familiar as his own mother. And in a way, it was.
Why dost thou weep so, my child?
"She was my love, my life…" Xav closed his eyes briefly, and another tear dripped from his closed lids onto the lifeless body he held, burning his eyes. He had not the heart even to lift his head and look upon his green goddess; far more important was the fallen one in his hands.
Thou was Charged to care for all my children, The voice sounded stern; Especially the precious treasure of the egg- or hast thou forgotten just as swiftly as thy former partner and friend hast forgotten thee?
"The eggs are my Charge, my calling- but she was my life, my soulmate- and even if none but I can remember her, still I will not leave her. I would die by her side, if it be your will to take both our souls to your service this day, my Goddess." He lowered his head over the crumpled fae; "Else I will meet my death here in a watery grave, and my soul be cast to whence the Tidelord wills it."
This I cannot allow. Soft leaves fell over his face, his shoulders, like a tender caress from the forest all round him. Perhaps, child, wouldst thou offer thyself in exchange for her?
"I would not presume to value myself so highly," He replied humbly; "Besides that, I am already pledged to your service; there is nothing more I can give that is not already yours."
A sussurus swept through the forest then, shivered in the branches of trees high above, and the sunlight sparkled a fraction warmer, as if the Goddess were laughing.
A fine answer, that does you both credit. For that, I will give you the boon you so desire. May she bring you peace.
Something crept across Allegra's skin, like a drying, a crackling- then she shook, like a butterfly in a coccoon and the dry shell fell away- revealing not white but green, emerald, all the colours of the canopy and all things alive and sacred to the Gladekeeper. Her body stayed brown, lush, like chocolate and healthy growth, as she coughed and spat up water- her wings beat strongly in his hands as she woke up slowly, staring at her body in shock, breathing hard, staring up at him- until recognition kicked in. Then she flung her arms around him and sobbed hard into his neck. "Oh, Xav! You saved me!"
She pulled back suddenly. "You know me. You do still know me, don't you? Oh please, don't tell me I've lost you, too-"
Xav nuzzled her gently back, though he had little strength to do even that- "Of course I know you, Allegra my love. I don't know what witchery or poison that bogsneak female did to our Loren's mind, but it seems complete. He did not know me either, as they dragged me away-" He smiled at her, though, and added- "But you're safe, now. You're safe."
Xav felt so tired. He lay his head down, just for a moment on the sand. Before he knew what was happening, something was tugging hard on his beard and someone struck him, desperate voices surrounded him- strange faces swum in his exhausted vision.
""Oh no." Cynfor wailed, spiralling around his old friend so quickly that he almost tied himself in knots. "No, no no no. This won't do. Not at all. Not even. Not having this, Xavneiros!!"
He pulled the huge guardian's head above water- "Not sure if this'll work- how- but heck, what've we got to lose, eh? Life? You're basically dead already. Limbs? Hey, limbs are overrated. Don't need 'em. So hang in there big guy, I'll see if I can't whip up a little ancient magic to save your hide. Well, probably not your hide."
He spun quickly around the struggling guardian's body- "Okay, shutting up now. Gotta concentrate."
A few minutes later, and exhausted, Cynfor paused, breathing hard- no magic thrill over his skin, no otherworldly glow, no sign that the Ouroborus spell had taken- and Xav's breathing was worse than ever.
Carbonel the dark-furred Tundra held Allegra, or more accurately was held by- the tundra had heard her distress as she flew through the forest, crying for help, and hadn't let go of his fur since then- but at least he'd raised the alarm. Brought Cynfor. For what good the strange crazy-sounding spiral might be, but the Tundra seemed certain he would help for some reason. Allegra pulled at the nature priest's robes, weakly, till he leaned close to listen to her pleas. But Carbonel shook his head; "Gladekeeper's boon has already returned his love to him. She can only grant so many miracles, even to Her favourites-"
"Why d'ya think I'm still growin' grass outta my ears? At least I win ever floral competition paws down," Quipped the moss-furred Tundra female by his side. Everyone stared at her, and she shrugged unrepentantly at their expressions.
Allegra begged; "Think, Cynfor! If you did it, if you cheated death, then he can too- please," Allegra was too tired to keep her eyes open, but refusing to sleep while her lover lay dying. Her skin ached, where it had peeled back and regrown- her wings were like lead weights. She had barely flown before, in her life- her new wings seemed- better, but it was so unfamiliar- it had been the most arduous flight of her life. And her fight wasn't over yet.
"Aaahh, shards and splinters- How can I make a dragon dance, when he can't even move?! It's impossible! He's not even airborne-"
"Could he be water-borne? Would that work?"
Nadine and Nereid, the Water dragons who had sensed the disturbance in the water and swum for more aid, had returned, dragging a half-drowned looking pearl catcher. "Work your spells, weather witch!" Nereid snapped, flicking her contemptuously with a wing towards the fallen Guardian. "A waterspout to rival your best. Or we'll drown you good and proper this time."
"He means, please." Nadine purred melodiously, stroking the pearl catcher's captured pearl in her hands. "But we really will, you know." She smiled dangerously as she held out the pearl, the claws almost gouging its luminescent surface.
"Icewarden save me from overzealous nymphs," Bering cursed, angrily snatching back her pearl and shaking off the hands which gripped her- "Why didn't you just say it was magic you wanted?! Give me a moment-"
She concentrated, weaving something bright and ribbon-like between her fingers, spun them together like threads from a bobbin- the water around them heaved, the skies darkened.
The land-based dragons hurriedly retreated, heading for higher ground; Allegra fought but Carbonel held her securely, reassuringly, telling her they would be reuinited soon enough back at camp- the aquatic pair retreated deeper- so only the excitedly whirling Cynfor, the weather-witch and the still form of the fallen white guardian were left in the swelling tide that rushed in to the quiet inlet, rising fast. First it was ripples, then tremors in the ocean- then droplets started to rise from the surface of the water, even as they fell from a suddenly torrential storm above them.
"Hurry!" Cynfor yelled above the din, clutching his friend's head to keep it above the water- "We're losing him!"
Bering screeched something in a strange language, and lightning flashed above them. Hail skittered off her wings and beat down around them, but the water began to swirl, and rise- and rise. The spout reached down and up, and suddenly the guardian was lifted clean off the ground, a vase wide waterspout shredding the mangroves and the sand bar beneath them, throwing uprooted trees through the air to pepper the shore like rag dolls. Xav begun to spin, barely able to move now, but it was enough- Cynfor bravely threw himself through the whirling water, blindly following the moves of the dance which he knew by now like the back of his hands. He wrapped the magic around himself and around Xav, as he did so, but it was unstable- he fought for control in the water but even as the flash of energy surrounded them both, lightning struck down the heart of the waterspout, knocking them both from their places and shattering the magic.
All was falling water and trees and dragons, all was white and noise and wet and heavy, until the storm subsided. The sun came back out, the forest quietened, the tide fell away again. And in the wreckage was a huge guardian, lying in the middle of the destruction. He was stained by the magic which had created him; his wings as blue as storm-tossed waves, white coils encircled him like the crests of same- and his skin was the colour of the deep sand in the ocean depths, where no light reached. He breathed heavily, coughed up water, and gazed around dazedly.
"Well, that's a pleasant surprise. It worked!" Cynfor, hanging like a snake from a tree, was too tired to stay airborne- but he chuckled. "Yay for ancient Spiral magicks and blind dumb luck!"
"Am I… blue?" Xav asked vaguely, bemusedly staring at his own reflection in the puddle dripping from his wings. He felt energised, strong, powerful- like he could tear a forest to pieces, or lift an Imperial with a hand, or-
"Side-effect of regeneration, old friend." Cynfor flicked a hand in vague concilliation- "But don't worry, you're still a Guardian. Still got your wits, too, I see. Always a bonus!"
"Allegra," He burst out suddenly, leaping to his feet. "Allegra! Where is she, I- last thing I remember, she- was-"
"Recovering. She got reincarnated the, ah- hard way around. It'll take some time getting used to." Cynfor clapped him on the back as the guardian passed his tree- "A very near miss there, old boy! Ocean nearly did for the pair of you. Don't worry though, a week or so in the Oakheart Clan and you'll be right as rain; we'll have you back to The Tribe in no time! I'm sure Loren will be beside himself, his Charge disappearing-"
"NO!" Shouted Xav suddenly, shocking Cynfor so much he fell out of his tree. "I- we- can't go back to the Tribe, Cynfor. They can't know we survived. They- there's- it's complicated. Better off that they think us dead at sea."
Cynfor shrugged, a considerable achievement being a stubby-legged snake. "Your call. Not like they'd recognise you, anyways. Come stay with us- mi casa, su casa, and all that. You'll like it here-" He grinned; "Plenty of eggs needing turning and so on!"
Xav brightened up at that, and helped Cynfor onto his shoulders, carrying the chattering spiral away up the slope from the bay.
There was a soft spluttering noise, like someone spitting out sand. "A scientific breakthrough!! What an achievement! I'll need to write down some observations, but do let's try that again, and perhaps next time I can stop to take some samples and readings of… wait. are you still there?" Bering's voice rose querulously from where she was slightly squashed under a fallen mangrove, but this didn't stop her monologue on scientific applications. Not that anyone was listening. Eventually, she stopped to ask- "Could someone please get this off me?"
"...Anyone?"
"Did you hear something, Nadine?" Queried Nereid pleasantly, as they winged away through the water lazily, heading for the deeper water again now their duty was done.
"Oh, now you mention it…" Nadine began-
"Anyone else?" Tried Bering, but there was only laughter and two splashing sounds as the water dragons dove again beneath the waves.
Cirsei's henchmen tried to ship the big guardian off to be sold on the slave markets, thinking him an unusually docile guardian and thus prime slave material. But though he in despair allowed them to take him away without putting up a fight, thinking the love of his life to be dead, the second he heard Allegra's shrill cries when they brought her aboard the ship, he saw red. He shredded the bars of his cage, fought the henchmen sent to quell him- as the sea turned out into open waters, they barricaded him below decks with everything they had to hand. As if the skies themselves heard his raging, the ship headed directly into a storm. Lightning lashed the ship, waves tossed it about- Xav broke through to the deck in time to watch the cages holding the squalling hatchlings and other slaves, start to slide into the ocean, the crew abandoning ship left and right without a care to their helpless captives. Xav scrambled across the heaving expanse, claws skittering and biting into wood when the ship pitched nearly over- and smashed his way through the cages one by one, calling Allegra's name over and over- taking the doors off with claws hitherto never used for anything more violent than preparing food. In the last, tiniest cage, right at the back, he heard the crying, lifted a filthy blanket, and spied his pale-skinned love cowering there. He freed her, held her tenderly cradled to his heart, oblivious to the maelstrom- but suddenly he heard something crack behind him and the world went dark.
Xav was knocked unconscious by the mast falling and cracking the bow in two. He awoke in the water, floating, with Allegra's tiny hands desperately holding his face above water by his beard, as she perched on a piece of flotsam. Her entreaties to stay awake made him fight the lethargy which would have been his undoing, staying conscious enough to sling one arm and leg over a large piece of floating mast before falling asleep again.
When he woke again properly, they had reached land- for what good it did, because he could barely move, let alone get out of the tidal pool he'd been washed in. He was dead tired, his eyes stung with salt, his body felt pummelled with fists and his claws were broken and bloody from the battle.
Xav's exhausted body could not break free of the mangroves which held him caged, but as the tide rose, it brought back with it a floating white shape in the water, just like a fallen butterfly, and infinitely more heartbreaking in his eyes. Her wings were torn, her body caked in mud and moss from the water's edge; she little resembled the fae he knew and loved, and her chest was still, her eyes glassy as they stared up sightless at the canopy overhead.
His heart broke, and his spirit melted, dripped from his eyes and he keened his heartbreak over the tiny broken body.
Some time after his grief had eclipsed into hollow senselessness, and the water gathered around his waist, as the tide turned- a breeze lifted the leaves in the trees around him, swirled around him, and there was a tangible thought, a voice without a mouth, or perhaps with many, many mouths, of different shapes and kinds. It spoke to him with the voice as familiar as his own mother. And in a way, it was.
Why dost thou weep so, my child?
"She was my love, my life…" Xav closed his eyes briefly, and another tear dripped from his closed lids onto the lifeless body he held, burning his eyes. He had not the heart even to lift his head and look upon his green goddess; far more important was the fallen one in his hands.
Thou was Charged to care for all my children, The voice sounded stern; Especially the precious treasure of the egg- or hast thou forgotten just as swiftly as thy former partner and friend hast forgotten thee?
"The eggs are my Charge, my calling- but she was my life, my soulmate- and even if none but I can remember her, still I will not leave her. I would die by her side, if it be your will to take both our souls to your service this day, my Goddess." He lowered his head over the crumpled fae; "Else I will meet my death here in a watery grave, and my soul be cast to whence the Tidelord wills it."
This I cannot allow. Soft leaves fell over his face, his shoulders, like a tender caress from the forest all round him. Perhaps, child, wouldst thou offer thyself in exchange for her?
"I would not presume to value myself so highly," He replied humbly; "Besides that, I am already pledged to your service; there is nothing more I can give that is not already yours."
A sussurus swept through the forest then, shivered in the branches of trees high above, and the sunlight sparkled a fraction warmer, as if the Goddess were laughing.
A fine answer, that does you both credit. For that, I will give you the boon you so desire. May she bring you peace.
Something crept across Allegra's skin, like a drying, a crackling- then she shook, like a butterfly in a coccoon and the dry shell fell away- revealing not white but green, emerald, all the colours of the canopy and all things alive and sacred to the Gladekeeper. Her body stayed brown, lush, like chocolate and healthy growth, as she coughed and spat up water- her wings beat strongly in his hands as she woke up slowly, staring at her body in shock, breathing hard, staring up at him- until recognition kicked in. Then she flung her arms around him and sobbed hard into his neck. "Oh, Xav! You saved me!"
She pulled back suddenly. "You know me. You do still know me, don't you? Oh please, don't tell me I've lost you, too-"
Xav nuzzled her gently back, though he had little strength to do even that- "Of course I know you, Allegra my love. I don't know what witchery or poison that bogsneak female did to our Loren's mind, but it seems complete. He did not know me either, as they dragged me away-" He smiled at her, though, and added- "But you're safe, now. You're safe."
Xav felt so tired. He lay his head down, just for a moment on the sand. Before he knew what was happening, something was tugging hard on his beard and someone struck him, desperate voices surrounded him- strange faces swum in his exhausted vision.
""Oh no." Cynfor wailed, spiralling around his old friend so quickly that he almost tied himself in knots. "No, no no no. This won't do. Not at all. Not even. Not having this, Xavneiros!!"
He pulled the huge guardian's head above water- "Not sure if this'll work- how- but heck, what've we got to lose, eh? Life? You're basically dead already. Limbs? Hey, limbs are overrated. Don't need 'em. So hang in there big guy, I'll see if I can't whip up a little ancient magic to save your hide. Well, probably not your hide."
He spun quickly around the struggling guardian's body- "Okay, shutting up now. Gotta concentrate."
A few minutes later, and exhausted, Cynfor paused, breathing hard- no magic thrill over his skin, no otherworldly glow, no sign that the Ouroborus spell had taken- and Xav's breathing was worse than ever.
Carbonel the dark-furred Tundra held Allegra, or more accurately was held by- the tundra had heard her distress as she flew through the forest, crying for help, and hadn't let go of his fur since then- but at least he'd raised the alarm. Brought Cynfor. For what good the strange crazy-sounding spiral might be, but the Tundra seemed certain he would help for some reason. Allegra pulled at the nature priest's robes, weakly, till he leaned close to listen to her pleas. But Carbonel shook his head; "Gladekeeper's boon has already returned his love to him. She can only grant so many miracles, even to Her favourites-"
"Why d'ya think I'm still growin' grass outta my ears? At least I win ever floral competition paws down," Quipped the moss-furred Tundra female by his side. Everyone stared at her, and she shrugged unrepentantly at their expressions.
Allegra begged; "Think, Cynfor! If you did it, if you cheated death, then he can too- please," Allegra was too tired to keep her eyes open, but refusing to sleep while her lover lay dying. Her skin ached, where it had peeled back and regrown- her wings were like lead weights. She had barely flown before, in her life- her new wings seemed- better, but it was so unfamiliar- it had been the most arduous flight of her life. And her fight wasn't over yet.
"Aaahh, shards and splinters- How can I make a dragon dance, when he can't even move?! It's impossible! He's not even airborne-"
"Could he be water-borne? Would that work?"
Nadine and Nereid, the Water dragons who had sensed the disturbance in the water and swum for more aid, had returned, dragging a half-drowned looking pearl catcher. "Work your spells, weather witch!" Nereid snapped, flicking her contemptuously with a wing towards the fallen Guardian. "A waterspout to rival your best. Or we'll drown you good and proper this time."
"He means, please." Nadine purred melodiously, stroking the pearl catcher's captured pearl in her hands. "But we really will, you know." She smiled dangerously as she held out the pearl, the claws almost gouging its luminescent surface.
"Icewarden save me from overzealous nymphs," Bering cursed, angrily snatching back her pearl and shaking off the hands which gripped her- "Why didn't you just say it was magic you wanted?! Give me a moment-"
She concentrated, weaving something bright and ribbon-like between her fingers, spun them together like threads from a bobbin- the water around them heaved, the skies darkened.
The land-based dragons hurriedly retreated, heading for higher ground; Allegra fought but Carbonel held her securely, reassuringly, telling her they would be reuinited soon enough back at camp- the aquatic pair retreated deeper- so only the excitedly whirling Cynfor, the weather-witch and the still form of the fallen white guardian were left in the swelling tide that rushed in to the quiet inlet, rising fast. First it was ripples, then tremors in the ocean- then droplets started to rise from the surface of the water, even as they fell from a suddenly torrential storm above them.
"Hurry!" Cynfor yelled above the din, clutching his friend's head to keep it above the water- "We're losing him!"
Bering screeched something in a strange language, and lightning flashed above them. Hail skittered off her wings and beat down around them, but the water began to swirl, and rise- and rise. The spout reached down and up, and suddenly the guardian was lifted clean off the ground, a vase wide waterspout shredding the mangroves and the sand bar beneath them, throwing uprooted trees through the air to pepper the shore like rag dolls. Xav begun to spin, barely able to move now, but it was enough- Cynfor bravely threw himself through the whirling water, blindly following the moves of the dance which he knew by now like the back of his hands. He wrapped the magic around himself and around Xav, as he did so, but it was unstable- he fought for control in the water but even as the flash of energy surrounded them both, lightning struck down the heart of the waterspout, knocking them both from their places and shattering the magic.
All was falling water and trees and dragons, all was white and noise and wet and heavy, until the storm subsided. The sun came back out, the forest quietened, the tide fell away again. And in the wreckage was a huge guardian, lying in the middle of the destruction. He was stained by the magic which had created him; his wings as blue as storm-tossed waves, white coils encircled him like the crests of same- and his skin was the colour of the deep sand in the ocean depths, where no light reached. He breathed heavily, coughed up water, and gazed around dazedly.
"Well, that's a pleasant surprise. It worked!" Cynfor, hanging like a snake from a tree, was too tired to stay airborne- but he chuckled. "Yay for ancient Spiral magicks and blind dumb luck!"
"Am I… blue?" Xav asked vaguely, bemusedly staring at his own reflection in the puddle dripping from his wings. He felt energised, strong, powerful- like he could tear a forest to pieces, or lift an Imperial with a hand, or-
"Side-effect of regeneration, old friend." Cynfor flicked a hand in vague concilliation- "But don't worry, you're still a Guardian. Still got your wits, too, I see. Always a bonus!"
"Allegra," He burst out suddenly, leaping to his feet. "Allegra! Where is she, I- last thing I remember, she- was-"
"Recovering. She got reincarnated the, ah- hard way around. It'll take some time getting used to." Cynfor clapped him on the back as the guardian passed his tree- "A very near miss there, old boy! Ocean nearly did for the pair of you. Don't worry though, a week or so in the Oakheart Clan and you'll be right as rain; we'll have you back to The Tribe in no time! I'm sure Loren will be beside himself, his Charge disappearing-"
"NO!" Shouted Xav suddenly, shocking Cynfor so much he fell out of his tree. "I- we- can't go back to the Tribe, Cynfor. They can't know we survived. They- there's- it's complicated. Better off that they think us dead at sea."
Cynfor shrugged, a considerable achievement being a stubby-legged snake. "Your call. Not like they'd recognise you, anyways. Come stay with us- mi casa, su casa, and all that. You'll like it here-" He grinned; "Plenty of eggs needing turning and so on!"
Xav brightened up at that, and helped Cynfor onto his shoulders, carrying the chattering spiral away up the slope from the bay.
There was a soft spluttering noise, like someone spitting out sand. "A scientific breakthrough!! What an achievement! I'll need to write down some observations, but do let's try that again, and perhaps next time I can stop to take some samples and readings of… wait. are you still there?" Bering's voice rose querulously from where she was slightly squashed under a fallen mangrove, but this didn't stop her monologue on scientific applications. Not that anyone was listening. Eventually, she stopped to ask- "Could someone please get this off me?"
"...Anyone?"
"Did you hear something, Nadine?" Queried Nereid pleasantly, as they winged away through the water lazily, heading for the deeper water again now their duty was done.
"Oh, now you mention it…" Nadine began-
"Anyone else?" Tried Bering, but there was only laughter and two splashing sounds as the water dragons dove again beneath the waves.
RELATIONSHIPS
Mate
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Former Partner
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Friend
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Friend
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GENE IDEAS
ART
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