Herayla The Glassworker, Karma Cafe Barista “So, that becomes the question. If you can't see the hawk, how do you know the hawk can't see you? If you find the web, can you determine the spider's prey?” aaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaa aaaaaa aaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaa

Dragons of the Fire Flight are a rarity in the Starfall Isles, as not many fire dragons are willing to cross an entire ocean to get to the other side. Thus, many hearths are left unlit in the arcane land, or inevitably blown up by a wayward researcher's attempt to light a fire. (Apparently, nobody's ever heard of matchsticks here.) The few fire dragons that do exist on this side of the ocean usually gain fame and wealth in a matter of days, as the ability to create fire without also creating a crater where your home used to stand is viewed as a novelty. Unfortunately for the natives of the Starfall Isles, not many fire dragons enjoy being convenient fire starters. Dragons from the Ashfall Wastes are creators, and while fire is one form of creation they can offer the world, they much prefer using that fire to create trinkets and small bits and bobbles to sell. Metallurgy is their specialty, but plenty of fire dragons are interested in other forms of craft. Other crafts, such as the delicate glasswork. And, well, if you think that just means those nice windows you can put up in your lair? You probably shouldn't meet Herayla. Meet Herayla. A glassworker from the Fire Flight, Herayla is obsessed with his craft, believing it to be the most superior of all crafts. To him, glass is perfection, not just a way to look at the outside worldwithout having to suffer the elements of nature. His creations are usually intricate and completely impractical, meant for display in a museum than to be used. To the dismay of his clanmates, this means if they even consider touching using those shiny new glass tubes for science, he'd torch the ground at their feet. To the dismay of Herayla, the threat of becoming barbecue isn't sufficient enough to dissuade Muffin from using his beautiful craft in her newest experiments. After a large yelling match that ended up solving nothing, the Spiral resigned himself to just making glass ornaments. After all, Mysteria approves of him hanging those around the Karma Cafe, as the Cafe wasn't about to be spending money decorating a place the other clan members have no choice but to go to in the lack of a bar. Most of that treasure is spent on the supplies needed to craft glassware, which are specially imported from the Ashfall Wastes. Nagara is Herayla's go-to for this, as the Nocturne is the only one who still has the energy to make trips to the outside world before being inevitably dragged back. Herayla also enjoys ordering from him because he is usually too obsessed with trying to escape the Mountain Range to remember exactly how much Herayla owes him. With no worries about his supplies or funds running short, Herayla can peacefully absorb himself in his craft. The glass ornaments he makes are breathtakingly beautiful, and when blown by the wind, unleash a run of unearthly wails not unlike the screams of imprisoned souls. Not that Herayla would know anything about that, of course. It's probably just the wind, or one of those hallucinations you get from the thin mountain air. There's absolutely nothing to worry about.

Aside from glasswork, Herayla is one of the baristas working for the Karma Cafe, as such was the only position available in the clan when he joined. This was fine with him, as he's a fan of tea and is more than happy to brew some for the kind dragons that shared his fate and had taken him into the clan. His specialty in the Cafe is oolong tea, something ludicrously pricey for a few ounces of liquid in a tiny white tea cup. Nobody can deny it's not good, though. A small sip of the expensive stuff is usually enough to put all your worries at ease, and all your money in Herayla's hoard. In his free time, Herayla likes spending time in the library reading or meditating. He loves murder mysteries, making him a kindred spirit of Valenya's. The two can often be found chatting over a cup of tea in the Karma Cafe. Their discussions on the various ways to murder someone without leaving any evidence is... interesting, to say the least. Hopefully, they just enjoying thinking about such mysteries, not actually putting them into action. At the very least, nobody important has been found murdered yet. Or perhaps that's just a display of their skill. The world will never know. Ayrveti is his younger cousin, whom he accidentally hatched while on babysitting duty. Herayla loves her and is eternally grateful that what is left of Myrtle's morals prevents her from taking a cleaver to the small noodle's neck. However, he does wish Myrtle had the decency to put Ayrveti gently down instead of hurling the hatchling headfirst at whoever was unlucky enough to be on guard duty that day, he knows wishing for more isn't likely to end well for him, especially if the Guardian is involved. That being the case, he often gives Astraea tea plants to take to Myrtle as a gesture of his gratitude. It would help if Astraea could remember his name long enough to tell the Guardian who had sent the plants, but knowing the scatterbrained Nocturne, that's really asking for too much. Of course, being saddled with a younger cousin has it cons, and in Herayla's case, the con is that nobody in the clan can bother to remember his name. As he's usually only called upon when Ayrveti is laying waste to whatever nice potted plants are left in the lair, most dragons know him solely as "Ayrveti's brother," despite the fact he's technically not her brother, nor even in direct bloodline relationship with her. Short of wearing a name tag at all times, Herayla has resigned himself to this nickname, knowing that it could be worse. After all, "Ayrveti's brother" is preferable to something utterly stupid, such as "Asdfghjkl." As his former clan was made up of plenty of Coatl dragons, Herayla is actually knows quite a bit of the Coatl language. Unfortunately, this skill is wasted in the Aequitas Clan, as there are no Coatls for him to practice with. Herayla doesn't mind, since his use of the language is probably grammatically incorrect and his accent horrific to the point where any dignified Coatl would feel actual physical pain. He's quite fluent in Coatl curses though, and will usually dissolve into a nonsensical melody of profanities when angered.

A dragon of the Ashfall Wastes, Herayla was born into a clan split by warring factions. He spent most of his early life trying to avoid conflict and nodding to whatever his parents wanted him to do, as housework was preferable to being tossed into the midst of combat. Of course, after a few years of this, he was fed up by the fact his clanmates couldn't seem to get their heads out of the fight long enough for even a few seconds of peace. The logical solution to this, of course, was to run away from the lair, which he did after raiding his clan's library and treasury. It was probably fortunate that his clanmates couldn't get their heads out of the fight long enough to notice he and a large portion of their wealth was missing, because otherwise he wouldn't have ever made it out of the clan's territory.

After washing his claws of his clan's business, Herayla apprenticed for a few years under an expert glassworker. He'd tell you now that he chose the craft because it was unique and rare, but in reality, it's mostly because his fire magic is too weak to accomplish any other craft. Of course, glasswork isn't all that appreciated in the Ashfall Wastes. Rather, it was appreciated, but since most fire dragons worked in forges and workshops involving metal and lots of sharp edges, any objects made of glass inevitably ends up as a shattered pile made of glass. That being so, Herayla decided to set off for a place where his craft could hopefully survive. That place, he decided, was the Starfall Isles. With all the researchers and scientists there, he was sure someone would need a glass item or two. So he packed up his tools, bid farewell to his teacher, and booked a trip to the Isles.

He still regrets that decision to this day.

Upon putting his feet on Arcane land, before he could even get over his seasickness (or begin his new adventure as a professional glassworker, on that matter), a mysterious portal scooped him out of reality and tossed him in the Runic Mountain Range. If Herayla had grown to like the land, he probably would've been tossed right back out. However, on his landing in Myrtle's very nice apple tree, he lost the majority of his tools to a nearby carnivorous plant that indiscriminately devoured all his luggage. Such grief was not ignored by the magic of the land, and thus Herayla was added to the roster of dragons who would never escape the Range. And like most of the dragons who are now part of the Aequitas Clan, he had no choice but to grudgingly accept his fate and joined the clan.

Later, he would find that his cousin Ayrveti had stowed away in his satchel. At that point, it was the least surprising thing that had happened that day.


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丞相祠堂何處尋，錦官城外柏森森。 映階碧草自春色，隔葉黃鸝空好音。 三顧頻煩天下計，兩朝開濟老臣心。 出師未捷身先死，長使英雄淚滿襟。 《蜀相》