Soleil
(#51087065)
Level 25 Imperial
Familiar
Autumn Millifae
Click or tap to view this dragon in Predict Morphology.
Energy: 45/50
This dragon’s natural inborn element is Light.
Male Imperial
This dragon is hibernating.
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Personal Style
Apparel
Skin
Scene
Measurements
Length
20.52 m
Wingspan
14.89 m
Weight
9275.64 kg
Genetics
Obsidian
Metallic
Metallic
Metals
Bee
Bee
Gold
Runes
Runes
Hatchday
Breed
Eye Type
Level 25 Imperial
Max Level
STR
133
AGI
9
DEF
6
QCK
37
INT
8
VIT
9
MND
6
Lineage
Biography
this dragon belongs to ponds
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This dragon has set out on a journey through Sornieth during Brightshine Jubilee '19 from Sunday, June 23 'til June 30. It is one of many that wants to visit lairs and clans, hoping to receive lore before being sent back to their home after the adventure is complete. Even years later they will be able to look back at this time by going through the poetry, prose and art they received, as well as all the encounters, adventure, new friends and enemies they encountered. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxTemplate made by Juri01 |
Day One: MandragoraAutumn, Clan Vertere #424218
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A journey to see the world - that was a dream for many dragons & Soleil had long been one of them. He had ignored the urge for long but as time passed it became harder & harder, the intimidating knowledge of the unpredictability of Imperial lifespans claiming an uncomfortable spot in the back of his mind - and slowly working its way to the front. He didn't want this anymore! Didn't want to sit and dwell on thoughts and only dream of what else there might be to see in Sornieth, when actually, nothing was holding him back. It was his life, his time & so many had taken this path before him. He decided to follow them & the call for adventure. Aware he wouldn't be able to see everything Sornieth had to offer, deciding where to head to was the first challenge he faced. There surely were a lot of possibilities to overcome it, but ... sometimes the most simple things could be the best solution. Who didn't like a little chance & gamble? He spread the largest map of Sornieth he could find in font of him, closed his eyes & with a tiny breath of Light magic illuminated an unknown spot on it. Opening his eyes Soleil found the shining spark in one of the southmost corners of the Viridian Labyrinth. This would be his first destination! 
The clan Soleil arrived at was young and small & for the first moment he felt something almost akin to ... disillisuionment. He wouldn't word it & did his best to brush the thought & doubts of his decisions away. The dragons looked up as he walked towards the borders of their territory - a cliff along the sea where the forest just begun and wasn't as dense yet - but continued what they were occupied with. For some of them, those occupations consisted of lazing around. But before he could approach a dragon, out of nowhere a Fae fluttered up to him. The tiny dragon was adorned in feathers and birdskulls and flowers and - didn't say a single word. And yet Soleil felt that he was invited. After she told him to follow - still wordless - she flew away as they came to a near, small clearing. She came back with a Guardian dressed in flowers & followed by blue butterflies feasting on their nectar & this time Soleil was greeted with words. "Naveen told me we have a visitor. Welcome to our clan, Vertere", the dragon spoke with a friendly nod. "I'm Veris." He smelled of spring. The dragons of Vertere, though forming a clan, were a quiet folk altogether and all of them reclusive to a dregree, even to their clanmates. But upon spending the day with them, Soleil came to learn it was rather a respect for personal space than the lack of solidarity & that they were actually quite fond of travelers like him. In fact, they were a clan concentrating on sheltering and escorting foreigners, who may have gotten lost in the Labyrinth or needed help on their journey to faraway places. They were a colorful bunch of different breeds, elements & characters. The most impressed he was, when he was led into the clan's underground lairs - something he hadn't expected to exist on their land before he was told about it! There was apparently an entrance from the surface, but the main entrance was accessed by flight into the side of the cliff they were partly living on. It led into a system of tunnels still in the making, with caved out rooms used as lairs as well as for storage. And with unfinished pillars in some places, that reminded him of home. Upon expressing interest he was introduced to Kuunvalo, a Ridgeback indeed from Light, who was the main architect of the system & spent a good deal of time talking with her about it & the structures of their birthplace. Soleil noticed she stayed away from personal talk about their shared origin though, and even though she seemed to miss something about it he respected her boundaries and changed the topic. In the evening Soleil contributet some of his provisions to the meal he shared with the clan & they spent it chatting about this and that, about the festivities in Light & the Labyrinth that called for brave adventurers to explore it - and suddenly Vertere's members didn't seem distant to each other or to him anymore. Not every clan member had their lair in the cliff, especially the Nature dragon's preferred to sleep above the ground, between the timber, but Soleil was offered a spare room in the system, which he gratefully accepted.
The next morning Soleil wrapped up his supplies and set up to continue his journey, without any more doubts - he was now sure wherever he ended up, there would be something interesting to see, learn, experience. "Do you need an escort?" Soleil laughed a little and shook his head. "I don't think so, but I appreciate the offer! I'm going back to Light. Not home, but there are many corners I've never visited." Yesterday's conversation with Kuunvalo had sparked this intent. "Then take this." 
"Madani made it, we give them to the dragons leaving us for a swift & safe journey." Soleil had met Veris' two daughters - one Nature, Faridat & one Plague, the latter sharing no resemblance to her family whatsoever, but with a just as strong bond to them. Soleil smiled. "Thank you, I'll be sure to keep hold of it." He took the item and said his goodbyes - then he was off to his next destination. |
RELATIONSHIPS
(In order of appearance)     
ACQUIRED
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Day Two: Clan Paladin - Sunbeam Ruins
(Saraceaser, #251571)
(Saraceaser, #251571)
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When Soleil made it back to the Sunbeam Ruins after traversing the eastern side of Sornieth, he realized that the Brightshine Jubilee was in full swing when got back. It was an incredible sight; he's seen it before, of course, but it still took his breath away every time. While he looked around at the stalls, the crowds, the way the entire Sunbeam Ruins was decorated, he didn't realize where exactly he was walking till he bumped right into something... or someone. "I'm so sorry for that, are you alright?" Soleil immediately apologized, concerned; he wasn't the biggest Imperial out there, but he was still a good size, especially when compared to most Dragon breeds. The Spiral's brightly colored wings fluttered, casting a dismayed look at the books and scrolls that were spilled all over the ground, but gave Soleil a kind, motherly smile. "Don't worry about it, sweetie! These things happen, and I wasn't quite paying attention myself," she said as she flitted about, picking up the fallen parchments and parcels. Feeling more than a bit embarrassed for his mistake, Soleil easily helped, carefully handing them to the much smaller Dragon who smiled in thanks. He knew better than to read whatever the was written on the parchments - it was extremely rude to do so, after all - but he couldn't help but stop when he accidentally glanced at one parchment in particular. "Excuse me?" He asked, and the Spiral hummed, glancing up to show she was listening. Feeling a bit wobbly with having the older Spiral's attention on him - he bumped into her, after all! - he coughed but held out his claws, showing the open parchment. She squinted at it for a moment, but then lit up in understanding. "Oh! The little outing my Clan's hosting? If you would like, you're more than welcome to come join us!" She said cheerfully as she cradled the heaps of scrolls to her chest. Soleil looked back at the parchment in his claws; it was an announcement that Clan Paladin was hosting a little outing to some of the more dangerous parts of the Sunbeam Ruins to study the history there and all were welcome to join, but it said it could be quite dangerous and warriors in particular were welcomed to join. Well, Soleil might not be the best warrior, but he was quite interested in learning more of the Sunbeam Ruins that he's never explored before... He looked up at the Spiral with a grin. "I would love to join." The next day, Soleil was watched as the outing - which had a much larger turn out than Soleil first thought - was split into groups, and he, as he had said he would act as a guard for the scholars and less warrior Dragons of his group, turned to the ones he was in charge of protecting. He was happy that Lyle, the Spiral from before, was among those he was guarding, and he smiled when he saw his new friend chatting animatedly with her partner, Tortank. Their group in particular were going to go explore a hidden part of the Hewn City, which he himself had yet to explore. The darkened areas of the Hewn City where very few enter was said to be full of ancient wonders from the long lost civilization from millennia ago, but more importantly it was said that here there was supposed to be intact relics and ruins, which was a rarity considering even with most of the Sunbeam Ruins having been doubled with efforts to be preserved recently, much of it was lost to time. A stalwart Pearlcatcher, Rainier, led the way into the dark mists of the Hewn City, Soleil studiously taking watch from the rear. The Hewn City itself was said to at times rival the Tangled Wood, even times surpass it due to the influence of remnants of the Shade still lingering in the air. Soleil just found the whole thing absolutely exciting and down right terrifying. The historians, archaeologists, and other scholars that made up the majority of the group all somehow seemed completely unfazed by the sheer unnatural darkness of the Hewn City, chatting animatedly as they all simply carried lanterns and torches to light the way and allow them to study their parchments. As it was, Soleil himself got caught up in one of the heated debates that started that he didn't notice that they arrived at their destination till an eerie feeling crawled up his neck. Freezing in place, he spun around, searching with what little light his lantern could provide for the source, but found nothing... at least nothing he could see. Shaking it off - he was acting like a little kid scared of ghosts! Everything was fine... though he was getting second thoughts on volunteering - he turned back and quickly caught up with the group, and he was more than a little grateful when Rainier called out for them to set up their temporary base as they arrived at the destination. After they quickly set up their little camp - which was mostly just a couple of portable tables, chairs, and lanterns - half of them split off to search while the rest stayed and continued looking over the many papers they all laid out. With a nod from Rainier, Soleil took a deep breath as he followed the other group deeper into the untouched ruins. Later when questioned by the others, Soleil would steadfastly say it wasn't his fault. It really wasn't! He, Tortank, and Lyle got to discussing some of the finer details and lore of the Hewn City when something in the shadows... caught his eye. As it was his job to protect the group - though he honestly still held doubts about that - he excused himself to go and check around to make sure no wild creature would come and stir trouble. At least that was what he was going to do; instead he found... he actually wasn't quite sure what he was looking at when he first found it. A glowing bunny? 
It definitely seemed like a rabbit, but it was glowing and didn't quite seem to have a body, not a physical one. Either way, it was still a bunny. "Hello there, little one; what are you doing a place like this?" He softly said, slowly holding out a claw; he was very big compared to the creature, after all, and he didn't quite know how but he definitely knew that it wouldn't harm him. And Soleil was absolutely ecstatic when the little creature came up and sniffed his claws before gently butting against it for pets. And it's body was definitely strange; it had a physical presence - he could feel he was petting the bunny - and it was warm, like pure sunlight, but at the same time it felt like trying to pet a heavy set of smoke. Deeming he pet it enough - and he can admit that the curious tilt of the bun's head was absolutely adorable and did things to him that were undignified - he got up and scanned the area; he still had his job, after all, but there was nothing else there. "Well, little one, I have to go, but try and go somewhere safe, alright? This isn't a place for something as cute as you," he told the creature softly before turning away. It wasn't till he was following the group back to the camp that he realized he was being followed. Turning around, the bunny from before gracefully hopped along, and stopped when it realized he stopped, again sitting back on its haunches and tilting its head. "...Do you want to come with me?" He hazarded a - hopeful - guess. Honestly he wasn't expecting the bunny to understand him, but he blinked in surprise when it hopped forward and gently headbutted his arm, before continuing on and following the fading light of the group. With a smile - and more than a little pleased at having made so many new friends in his short time there - he followed after. "I'll take that as a yes." (Later, after Soleil bid those of Clan Paladin farewell with his new little friend by his side, he would contemplate giving the creature a name; he couldn't keep calling it 'Little One' and 'Bun', after all.) |
RELATIONSHIPS
(In order of appearance)   
ACQUIRED
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Day Three: ponds, 66493
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Finally, his spark of light lands somewhere further than his home lair, and Soleil lets out an excited huff. At last, he can begin exploring new places and greater distances! He allows the new familiar to settle onto his shoulder and sets flight. It doesn't take being too close to the Tangled Wood to feel it, the same eeriness as before, the general feeling of being watched. The logical side of him said it was probably nothing, and yet Soleil couldn't help but be glad of the glowing familiar, no matter how small. It felt like a piece of home, even as he looked around at his strange surroundings. It is as he is looking around that he spots a fellow Light dragon, Metztli, flying in the near vicinity, his colouring rendering him nearly entirely camouflaged. Soleil approaches him carefully, hoping to ask for directions or perhaps to figure out a place to stay, but the other dragon takes a sharp turn to the left and the Imperial isn't sure whether or not to follow him. Still, the dusk is fast approaching and the Tangled Wood's lingering shadows grow larger with each passing moment so, making a quick decision of it, Soleil follows the mysterious dragon towards the settlement his clan occupies. "Excuse me, I don't mean to be a bother, I was just hoping to find somewhere to stay the night?" Metztli gives the Imperial a once over and, deeming him a non-threat, nods curtly. "We seem to be picking up a lot of strays lately, I don't suppose another one will make much difference." The Coatl shrugs dramatically, then points in the general direction of the clan's leader, Shiva, who is happy to let him stay provided that he serve as an extra lookout the following night. 
Soleil doesn't mind; it seems like a fair trade off, and he is happy to have somewhere nice and warm to fall asleep in, not particularly interested in spending the night in the depths of the Tangled Wood by himself. And besides, he gets a sharp pair of bracers for his trouble. On his third night in Mythos, as he is walking back to his guest quarters, he encounters Circe and yelps, loudly. The female gives him an exasperated sigh, and pulls her bone crown off. "Afraid of our own shadows, are we?" Soleil clears his throat, trying to regain some composure after that fiasco of a first impression. "Forgive me, I just wasn't expecting to find anyone here so late." The Skydancer smiles, sharp-edged teeth gleaming in the moonlight – it doesn't feel reassuring in the slightest. "I was on my way to perform a ritual." She say, nodding towards her supplies. 
It takes a lot of self control for Soleil not to shudder at the sight, already imagining what sort of rituals Circe took part in, and glad that he had nothing to do with them. "Well... Good luck with that." He says, bidding her goodnight and retiring to his tent. Though the dragons of Mythos were a welcoming bunch, Soleil couldn't help but think he had been left with some of the strangest ones. All in all, his experience in Shadow had been strange and off-putting by and large and, as such, he decides to leave on the fourth day, familiar safely tucked in a nook between his neck and a wing. He thanks Shiva for the hospitality and, as he flies away, hopes never to return to these people. |
RELATIONSHIPS
(In order of appearance)   
ACQUIRED
|
Day Four: Starsoul, Clan Fermi #309479
As Soleil looked at his map for his fourth destination, he couldn’t help but feel both relieved, as it is nowhere near his previous stop, and a sense of foreboding. Where the foreboding came from, he couldn’t tell, but excitement quickly shoved it to the back of his mind. After all, he was visiting the Starfall Isles, with strange meteor-riding creatures and home to a flight filled with fantastical magic. Turning his head to face his shoulder, Soleil smiles as his new familiar sniffs inquisitively at the map, then makes sure the little bunny is safely tucked away. Facing forward once more, he flies into the sky and toward his next destination.
After a long journey from the Tangled Wood, which he was very thankful to leave, and across the Scarred Wasteland, Soleil has finally reached Starfall Isles. As the light of the sun reflects off the mighty Crystalspine Reaches, a shiver runs down the Imperial's spine, disrupting the beat of his wings for a moment before he stabilizes his flight. There it is again, that strange feeling of being watched by invisible eyes. He cranes his neck and searches the area around and under him, but like the times before, nothing is there. Dismissing it as mere paranoia, though still suspicious, Soleil flies a bit longer until floating in the water below him he spots a... pirate ship? There appears to be movement on the deck from figures too massive to be anything but dragons, and curiosity gets the better of him.
As he glides down closer to the water’s surface, voices drift up to him. “Barracuda, for the love of Arcanist, what are you doing?” A response, presumably from Barracuda, only gives Soleil more questions; “Well obviously I’m using water to put out the flames from when Althea decided to make a grenade infused with magic! I told him to test it out back on land, but he just couldn’t wait!” Deciding this as good a time as any, Soleil calls down to the two, now clearly visible to be Faes, “Um, hello? Do you mind if I land on your... ship?” The two look up sharply at him, so absorbed in their conversation they didn’t notice him until now. They glance to each other, and, seeming to come to a decision, the one named Barracuda shouts back. “Sure, come on down! Be careful of the embers on port side." Spotting the aforementioned embers near where Barracuda is standing, Soleil slowly descends onto the deck of the ship.
"Right, well, I'm Soleil. Pleasure to meet you both. Do you happen to know of anywhere to stay the night?"As he says this, a door to the far left opens to reveal a Pearlcatcher, who observes Soleil with an unreadable expression, behind which is another Fae. The two step over to stand in front of Soleil, both slightly bowing their heads in greeting. "Good day, traveller. My name is Moray." The Fae speaks up, in a surprisingly raspy voice. "The Pearlcatcher is Wren, and I assume you've already met Candiru and Barracuda. May I inquire your purpose as to being here?" Soleil doesn’t have time to answer, as Barracuda bounds over to Moray and throws an arm around his shoulders. “Hey bro, this is Soleil! He’s looking for a place to spend the night, do you think he could stay with the clan?” Shrugging off the other’s arm, Moray gives Soleil an appraising look. Seemingly satisfied, he says, “Well, how about it, traveller? We were about to head back to the clan anyway, it's a short sail from here." Thinking the offer over, Soleil can't help but notice the return of the sense of foreboding. However, these dragons seem to be sincere, so he accepts.
As the ship comes to dock, Moray ushers Soleil off, then leads him a few steps more to a building next to the docks. The building is a strange mix between modern and classical; though the shape of the building resembles a mansion from centuries ago, the large square windows and white marble walls give it a more contemporary look. Thankfully, his large size is no problem, as there is a set of doors capable of letting the largest Imperial through. "This is where guests such as yourself stay. Just find the nearest dragon with a familiar following them around and that's you all set. Oh, by the way," Moray walks away toward a bundle of structures farther away, looking at Soleil over his shoulder, "welcome to Clan Fermi. Don't worry, we're only a little insane."
Day Five: Scatterspark #158524
When Soleil's little spark of light landed on another clan at the edge of the Sunbeam Ruins, he couldn't suppress a sigh. Here was trying to get away from home, to experience the world, and luck kept bringing him back! But his experience with Clan Paladin had turned out to be interesting enough, so away he went, to Scatterspark Outpost.
Gazing around now, he must admit... this is not what he expected. While most of Light territory tends to be broad, open plains and meadows, or sun-dappled woods, the outpost is settled in a canyon, right on the border between the Sunbeam Ruins and the Shifting Expanse. And that's the other thing-- he hadn't even considered the border with Lightning that the clan occupies. All around him, there's a mishmash of magic and technology, of tradition and progress. On one side of the town, there's a handsome library with stained glass windows, depicting scholarly scenes and beautiful flowers. And on the other side, there's a shining radio tower of steel and copper. Lightning spires rise out of the clifftops, catching the crackling energy of the stormclouds that roil through; but there are wide, flat panels, too, soaking up the sunlight that breaks through those stormclouds.
The town center is bustling with activity. There are little shops and stalls selling wares of all kinds, by dragons of all elements. There are even a handful Beastclan people wandering about: Miths and Longnecks, even a Harpy or two. And though Brightshine Jubilee may be half over, here in Scatterspark Outpost, the dragons are still jubilant. The marketplace is adorned with banners and strings of lamps, bright even in midday, and music rings out from radios placed here and there. There's so much to see! How can he fit it all into one day's visit?
Best to start at the beginning. There's a banner there, beside the inn, which reads:
Welcome Traveling Archaeologists!
The dragon sitting behind the table doesn't look welcoming, though, so much as slightly uncomfortable: a violet Mirror with vividly-streaked red wings, bright orange eyes peering out from beneath his cap. As Soleil approaches, though, he brightens, straightening up. "Hey there! Are you an archaeologist? I could really use-- uh," he catches himself, coughs, and tries again, "I mean, welcome! To our glorious outpost."
He gives Soleil a sheepish grin-- as sheepish as a Mirror with a mouthful of jagged teeth can manage, that is. "Alright, so, I'm not exactly a native. I work for the Reclamation Bureau, hunting down dangerous artifacts. And, well, I'm on the hunt for one right now. It's at the site of an ruined old lair not far from here... but you know how cursed objects can be. Best to go with a friend, right?"
This is not really what Soleil had expected his first real archaeological expedition to entail... but he can't deny that he's a little curious. "Exactly how dangerous is this artifact?" he asks.
"Oh, well, it won't kill you or anything," the Mirror quickly assures him. "Not this one, anyway. It's a magical diadem that makes the wearer really, really beautiful."
"That doesn't sound like much of a curse," says Soleil, doubtfully.
The Mirror scoffs. "Yeah, that's why we need to take it into custody. One of the side effects is extreme vanity... you don't want to see what happens when an irresistibly pretty dragon gets it into their head to start making crazy demands from their poor admirers. That is, if they can stop staring at mirrors long enough to come up with demands."
Soleil pictures it for a moment, then has to admit, "...Okay, yeah. Maybe that is a curse."
"Right!" The Mirror nods. "I just need to pack it in a warded crate, and bring it back to the Bureau. As long as you don't put it on your head, you should be fine. What do you say?"
Sensing Soleil's hesitation, the Mirror quickly adds, "And if you help me with this mission, I'll show you around town, buy you a drink. Or take you to the library, and you can read some safe, cozy books 'til your eyes fall out. I, uh, sort of know my way around." His expression turns a little embarrassed. "I do sort of spend a... few of my off-hours here. And my off-days. ...It's just a real nice town, okay?"
Soleil can't help but grin at the other dragon's embarrassment. As if there's something wrong with having a place to call home! "Alright. I'll help you with the diadem. But then I want a tour. A good one."
The violet Mirror flashes Soleil a grin in return. "Great! Well, let's get going then! My name's Taliesin, by the way. What's yours?"
Together, Taliesin and Soleil make their way to the ruins of a long-abandoned settlement, a few miles outside of town. Despite his nervousness about the cursed artifact they're looking for, Soleil is excited to explore a real ancient ruin, even one that's been thoroughly picked over by other archaeologists and scavengers. While he and Tali search, there's plenty of opportunity to examine the fallen structures, the worn runes carved on stone, the shards of pottery and scraps of corroded metal half-buried in the dirt. Tali assures him that if he finds anything interesting, he's welcome to keep it (unless it's cursed, of course). Soleil does manage to find a couple intact arrowheads, some kind of odd, curved metal tool, and several pieces of colorful pottery, which he stashes in his bag to study more thoroughly later.
The two of them spend most of the day digging in the ruined settlement, before Taliesin finally finds the artifact they're after. "Aha! Come on, come help me with this." The Mirror pulls on a pair of thick gloves and dark goggles. Soleil holds the warded container out at arm's length, watching warily as Tali carefully deposits the pretty, innocuous-looking diadem inside.
Once the container is sealed, and the pretty diadem safely locked away, Tali grins up at the Imperial. "Alright! Mission accomplished. Thanks for the help."
"No problem," says Soleil. "This has actually been a pretty interesting mission. I got some good things to examine later, myself. Now... how about that tour?"
Taliesin looks surprised, but only for a moment, before he agrees, "Right! Yeah, definitely. I didn't forget!"
Even as the sky darkens, Scatterspark Outpost is still full of light and activity. Taliesin makes good on his promise, showing the dark Imperial all around the little town. He's introduced to vendors and guards, and even the local mechanic, a personal friend of Tali's. He spends some time perusing the stall run by the leader of the local trading company, and can't help but buy a few interesting trinkets. By the time they make their way to the library, it's already closed for the evening, but Soleil promises himself that he'll visit for a few hours before he leaves again tomorrow. Not only are many of the books illuminated by a local artist, but they also have a small collection of historical artifacts and rare minerals. Soleil can't call himself much of a scholar if he doesn't make time to see that!
As the evening wears on, he comes to like Taliesin quite a bit. The smaller dragon is optimistic and good-humored, and despite his claims of being a career dragon, it's clear that he has a lot of fondness for the outpost and and its citizens. Soleil and Taliesin end their evening at the Merry Marzal, where Tali keeps his promise of buying Soleil a drink.
"Hey, it was great hanging out with you today," Tali says, licking droplets of mead from his snout. "And I really do appreciate your help with the diadem. Maybe we'll get to work together again sometime."
"It's no problem," says Soleil, smiling. "I'll help you out again any time."
Day Six: Kaivyrin | Clan of the Burningsky Aerie | #434752
After leaving Scatterspark Outpost, the intense urge to fly long and far and fast grips Soleil. He watches the desert fly by far below, soaring aimlessly over the Shifting Expanse.
When his wings finally give out, he looks to his map for a destination. To his surprise, it’s not far from where he is now, and in the same direction he’s been flying in.
After resting, he takes to the sky again and, at an easier pace, flies toward the Ashfall Waste. Though he’s in a desert, the air this high up has thus far been relatively cool; as he approaches the fireflight’s domain, it heats up.
He doesn’t want to surprise the clan he’s come to visit to badly. He spots a Nocturne sitting on a high ridge over a caldera- they must be the lookout. Hoping he’s far enough away, he lands about fifty body-lengths in front of the Nocturne.
The Nocturne stands, seeing him, and opens their wings. Soleil doesn’t hear anything, but they must have called out to their clan, because two Mirrors and a Skydancer appear beside them.
The Nocturne stays on the ridge, but the other three lope towards him.
They pull up before Soleil. One of the Mirrors is a dark red, almost the color of blood; she is clearly in charge, as she lifts her head to look Soleil in the eye.
“My name is Ckivsil. Who are you, and why do you come here?”
“I am Soleil,” he responds. “I am a traveler passing through. Will you allow me to visit your clan for a time?”
Ckivsil tilts her head, but otherwise her expression remains neutral. Soleil doesn’t know what to make of it. “Swear you mean no harm, and we will welcome you.”
“Of course. By my word and honour, I mean no harm to you or to your clan.”
Ckivsil nods. “Come.”
All three step to his sides, and escort him toward the caldera. Once they’re standing in the middle of it, surrounded by other curious dragons, Ckivsil begins again. “We are the Indomitables of the Burningsky Aerie. I have introduced myself to you already: my name is Ckivsil. This is Rhavsyrik, and Charin,” she introduces her companions with a tilt of her head to the other Mirror and Skydancer respectively. “We are this clan’s leaders. You are welcome here; if you have any questions, please find one of us.”
“Qiriv will show you to the travelers’ den. Please, make yourself at home,” says Charin.
And he does. The Ashfall Waste is far from the Sunbeam Ruins, and far from home, but it is surprisingly nice- he could get used to the constant heat, and the thermals constantly rolling off the volcano are a blast to fly. The clan is endlessly welcoming, and Soleil enjoys his first few days there.
And then the attacks come.
It begins with a normal day: Soleil emerges from his den and stretches in the dawning sunlight. He greets Imyral, who had been on night watch. The next posted guard will be out soon to take her place, and she’s fighting off sleep.
He leaps up to where she’s sitting, both to keep her awake and enjoy the sunrise. It’s a quiet morning over the Waste.
There’s movement. There’s a single, small Tundra dragon out on the plain around the caldera. Usually Soleil wouldn’t think anything of it, but for two facts: first, no one is allowed out alone during the dark hours, and second, there are no Tundras in the Burningsky Aerie.
The Tundra is coming their way. Soleil catches Imyral’s attention, who was looking the other way. She turns to look where he points, and her eyes widen.
“Feral,” she gasps, before leaping down into the caldera and howling.
Soleil knew there was something in the lands around the caldera, but whenever it was brought up, someone would send a furtive glance his way and change the topic. They didn’t want him to know, so he didn’t press.
He glances back at the Tundra.
It’s not alone anymore.
There’s a veritable flood of dragons, running and flying alike, toward the Aerie. Soleil gasps, and follows Imyral.
Her howling must have been an alarm, because the Aerie is now full of dragons, surging from the underground dens. Most of them take flight the moment they’ve got a view of the sky, spreading out and ready to take on the attackers.
Soleil doesn’t know who they are, or why they’re attacking. He just knows that he will defend this clan who welcomed him, even if it puts his own life at risk. He cares about them. He couldn’t stand to see them destroyed.
The attackers must outnumber their defense two to one. This is not going to be an easy fight.
Soleil can hear the thunder of claws on stone, and prepares himself.
Then they’re everywhere.
They come pouring into the caldera, but the Clan of the Burningsky Aerie surges forward to meet them.
Soleil will openly admit, when he left the Sunbeam Ruins weeks ago to explore the world, he didn’t expect to end up fighting for his life in the Ashfall Waste. There’s nothing but blood and fury and the haze of the fight.
(Suddenly, his unpredictable lifespan looks a lot more predictable.)
It feels like it lasts forever, even if he knows it can’t. His muscles and his flanks alike are burning, and he’s beginning to weaken. There’s a lot of blood.
But he knows he’s a better fighter than a lot of dragons here. He has to go on, for their sake. The attackers fight furiously, but recklessly; once he catches his jaws on a throat, it’s all over.
He tries not to kill, but the attackers have no such inhibitions, and he’s snapped not a few necks when there’s no other way to save a life.
Finally, he lifts his head and swings it around, looking for the next attacker, and there’s no one there.
He stands shocked, chest heaving, for a moment. It’s over. It’s over.
It’s over.
Soleil collapses.
/////
When he wakes again, he’s in the medical den. He doesn’t know how much time has passed, but there are other dragons around him, sound asleep. They’re heavily bandaged, and when Soleil shifts, he realizes he’s the same.
He spots Silvyrn in his nest on the far side of the room. The medic isn’t as bandaged up as the rest of them, but he's sleeping lightly, shifting around in his nest. He’s tired. Soleil doesn’t want to disturb him.
As quietly as he can, Soleil lifts himself out of his nest and pads to the entrance of the den. He winces at the pain that shoots down his side, but he can work through it.
He pushes his way out to the open caldera. He must have slept most of the day; the sun is going down again. The only other dragon out here is Ckivsil.
The Mirror’s eyes are closed, and her harpy companion is resting on her shoulders. There’s bandages wrapped around her chest, and even folded, Soleil can spot a few tears in her wings.
“Soleil.”
Ckivsil must have heard his footsteps, because she tips her head in his direction as she addresses him. He dips his head in a respectful greeting. “I must thank you for fighting beside us. I am sorry that you needed to.”
“I could not have been here and left you. If I may ask,” Soleil starts, casting a sideways glance at the Indomitable, “who was that? Why did they attack you?”
Ckivsil sighs. “They’ve been harassing us- and other clans in the region- for some time now. We call them the Ferals. They’re not... we captured one, once, and couldn’t get any information out of it, because it wasn’t acting like a dragon at all. It wasn’t in its right mind. None of them are. We don’t know why.”
“Oh,” says Soleil. He can’t think of anything else to say.
They sit in silence while the sun sets. It feels like it just rose.
Soleil stays at the Aerie for two more weeks. His injuries are extensive, but nothing that won’t heal. By then it had been much longer than he expected, and prepares to move on.
All three Indomitables see him off.
“I think I can speak for us all when I say it has been good to meet you,” says Charin. “Know you will be welcome here, should you ever choose to return.”
Soleil nods. “It has been good to meet you all, too. I’ll remember.”
It's been a long, tiring journey. Some of that exhaustion, undoubtedly, comes from the battle two weeks ago, but regardless he's ready to start heading home. He'll be flying toward the Sunbeam Ruins, though he’s not sure he’s quite ready to return to his home lair.
He glances at the Indomitables, and their clan gathered behind them, one more time. Then he turns, opens his wings, and takes to the sky.
When his wings finally give out, he looks to his map for a destination. To his surprise, it’s not far from where he is now, and in the same direction he’s been flying in.
After resting, he takes to the sky again and, at an easier pace, flies toward the Ashfall Waste. Though he’s in a desert, the air this high up has thus far been relatively cool; as he approaches the fireflight’s domain, it heats up.
He doesn’t want to surprise the clan he’s come to visit to badly. He spots a Nocturne sitting on a high ridge over a caldera- they must be the lookout. Hoping he’s far enough away, he lands about fifty body-lengths in front of the Nocturne.
The Nocturne stands, seeing him, and opens their wings. Soleil doesn’t hear anything, but they must have called out to their clan, because two Mirrors and a Skydancer appear beside them.
The Nocturne stays on the ridge, but the other three lope towards him.
They pull up before Soleil. One of the Mirrors is a dark red, almost the color of blood; she is clearly in charge, as she lifts her head to look Soleil in the eye.
“My name is Ckivsil. Who are you, and why do you come here?”
“I am Soleil,” he responds. “I am a traveler passing through. Will you allow me to visit your clan for a time?”
Ckivsil tilts her head, but otherwise her expression remains neutral. Soleil doesn’t know what to make of it. “Swear you mean no harm, and we will welcome you.”
“Of course. By my word and honour, I mean no harm to you or to your clan.”
Ckivsil nods. “Come.”
All three step to his sides, and escort him toward the caldera. Once they’re standing in the middle of it, surrounded by other curious dragons, Ckivsil begins again. “We are the Indomitables of the Burningsky Aerie. I have introduced myself to you already: my name is Ckivsil. This is Rhavsyrik, and Charin,” she introduces her companions with a tilt of her head to the other Mirror and Skydancer respectively. “We are this clan’s leaders. You are welcome here; if you have any questions, please find one of us.”
“Qiriv will show you to the travelers’ den. Please, make yourself at home,” says Charin.
And he does. The Ashfall Waste is far from the Sunbeam Ruins, and far from home, but it is surprisingly nice- he could get used to the constant heat, and the thermals constantly rolling off the volcano are a blast to fly. The clan is endlessly welcoming, and Soleil enjoys his first few days there.
And then the attacks come.
It begins with a normal day: Soleil emerges from his den and stretches in the dawning sunlight. He greets Imyral, who had been on night watch. The next posted guard will be out soon to take her place, and she’s fighting off sleep.
He leaps up to where she’s sitting, both to keep her awake and enjoy the sunrise. It’s a quiet morning over the Waste.
There’s movement. There’s a single, small Tundra dragon out on the plain around the caldera. Usually Soleil wouldn’t think anything of it, but for two facts: first, no one is allowed out alone during the dark hours, and second, there are no Tundras in the Burningsky Aerie.
The Tundra is coming their way. Soleil catches Imyral’s attention, who was looking the other way. She turns to look where he points, and her eyes widen.
“Feral,” she gasps, before leaping down into the caldera and howling.
Soleil knew there was something in the lands around the caldera, but whenever it was brought up, someone would send a furtive glance his way and change the topic. They didn’t want him to know, so he didn’t press.
He glances back at the Tundra.
It’s not alone anymore.
There’s a veritable flood of dragons, running and flying alike, toward the Aerie. Soleil gasps, and follows Imyral.
Her howling must have been an alarm, because the Aerie is now full of dragons, surging from the underground dens. Most of them take flight the moment they’ve got a view of the sky, spreading out and ready to take on the attackers.
Soleil doesn’t know who they are, or why they’re attacking. He just knows that he will defend this clan who welcomed him, even if it puts his own life at risk. He cares about them. He couldn’t stand to see them destroyed.
The attackers must outnumber their defense two to one. This is not going to be an easy fight.
Soleil can hear the thunder of claws on stone, and prepares himself.
Then they’re everywhere.
They come pouring into the caldera, but the Clan of the Burningsky Aerie surges forward to meet them.
Soleil will openly admit, when he left the Sunbeam Ruins weeks ago to explore the world, he didn’t expect to end up fighting for his life in the Ashfall Waste. There’s nothing but blood and fury and the haze of the fight.
(Suddenly, his unpredictable lifespan looks a lot more predictable.)
It feels like it lasts forever, even if he knows it can’t. His muscles and his flanks alike are burning, and he’s beginning to weaken. There’s a lot of blood.
But he knows he’s a better fighter than a lot of dragons here. He has to go on, for their sake. The attackers fight furiously, but recklessly; once he catches his jaws on a throat, it’s all over.
He tries not to kill, but the attackers have no such inhibitions, and he’s snapped not a few necks when there’s no other way to save a life.
Finally, he lifts his head and swings it around, looking for the next attacker, and there’s no one there.
He stands shocked, chest heaving, for a moment. It’s over. It’s over.
It’s over.
Soleil collapses.
/////
When he wakes again, he’s in the medical den. He doesn’t know how much time has passed, but there are other dragons around him, sound asleep. They’re heavily bandaged, and when Soleil shifts, he realizes he’s the same.
He spots Silvyrn in his nest on the far side of the room. The medic isn’t as bandaged up as the rest of them, but he's sleeping lightly, shifting around in his nest. He’s tired. Soleil doesn’t want to disturb him.
As quietly as he can, Soleil lifts himself out of his nest and pads to the entrance of the den. He winces at the pain that shoots down his side, but he can work through it.
He pushes his way out to the open caldera. He must have slept most of the day; the sun is going down again. The only other dragon out here is Ckivsil.
The Mirror’s eyes are closed, and her harpy companion is resting on her shoulders. There’s bandages wrapped around her chest, and even folded, Soleil can spot a few tears in her wings.
“Soleil.”
Ckivsil must have heard his footsteps, because she tips her head in his direction as she addresses him. He dips his head in a respectful greeting. “I must thank you for fighting beside us. I am sorry that you needed to.”
“I could not have been here and left you. If I may ask,” Soleil starts, casting a sideways glance at the Indomitable, “who was that? Why did they attack you?”
Ckivsil sighs. “They’ve been harassing us- and other clans in the region- for some time now. We call them the Ferals. They’re not... we captured one, once, and couldn’t get any information out of it, because it wasn’t acting like a dragon at all. It wasn’t in its right mind. None of them are. We don’t know why.”
“Oh,” says Soleil. He can’t think of anything else to say.
They sit in silence while the sun sets. It feels like it just rose.
Soleil stays at the Aerie for two more weeks. His injuries are extensive, but nothing that won’t heal. By then it had been much longer than he expected, and prepares to move on.
All three Indomitables see him off.
“I think I can speak for us all when I say it has been good to meet you,” says Charin. “Know you will be welcome here, should you ever choose to return.”
Soleil nods. “It has been good to meet you all, too. I’ll remember.”
It's been a long, tiring journey. Some of that exhaustion, undoubtedly, comes from the battle two weeks ago, but regardless he's ready to start heading home. He'll be flying toward the Sunbeam Ruins, though he’s not sure he’s quite ready to return to his home lair.
He glances at the Indomitables, and their clan gathered behind them, one more time. Then he turns, opens his wings, and takes to the sky.
Day Seven: Lilystar6, clan Starlight
After the fight for the Burningsky Aerie, returning to the sunbeam ruins is a relief, like a breath of fresh air, or watching the sun rise. And with that renewal comes the decision to visit one more spark, within light territory.
He had been annoyed, in the past, with how many of these sparks took him back towards home, but now it was exactly what he wanted. A chance to continue his trip a little closer to home, the best of both worlds.
Something had shifted since the first random sparks, allowing him to tell a direction to go, without even needing to pull out a map and see what glowed.
Upon realizing the the spark was leading him towards the hewn city, however, the prospect suddenly became more than a little daunting. Sure, last time he had had anything to do with that tainted place, he had returned with an absolutely adorable little light spirit. But, as had been demonstrated earlier, following his sparks of light wasn't always safe.
Pulling out his map, Soleil resolved to see just where this spark had landed, and if it was in the hewn city, it could go unexplored.
He noticed with a little relief that the spark while uncomfortably close to the Hewn City, wasn't in it. But even as he did so, a voice called out.
"Are you lost?" The voice belonged to a green winged imperial, who was carrying what looked to be a rolled up fishing net. "I'm from a clan near here, so I might be able to help."
Rather than explain, he simply pointed on the map to where the spark had been. "Do you know if any clan lives there?"
She gave a small huff of laughter, "Seeing as that's where my clan lives, yes." She then looked him over. "Are you looking for us regarding our oracle, or just one of the travelers using this brightshine as impetus to go exploring Sorineth?"
"One of the later. But may I ask, why would people be looking for an oracle here in light; isn't that a water flight blessing?"
"Normally; but normal has very little to do with Harris. He has a very strong gift of divination. And well, superstition and worry are universal plagues. People always want to banish the fear of the unknown, and what is more unknown than the future? Which means that a lot of dragons, look to an oracle for the fates of our hatchlings. Of course, since brightshine is auspicious time, we might have all chosen now to do that." Here she blushed slightly at admitting to her own indulgence, before becoming more serious quickly. "Which, in turn, created a major problem when the incident regarding pandora's box caused both Harris and his daughter Galia to be too ill to use their gifts with any coherency. So we have also been asking anyone with any gift for divination to try to lend a claw."
And here, Soleil had a question to interject, "Wouldn't you get a lot of potential scams as well? Surely people would simply claim anything in hopes of being rewarded for 'helping'."
"We did consider that, so we also had another test to tell who had any talent. Or who simply got lucky, but past a certain point luck becomes indistinguishable from skill." She then paused for a moment. "Oh sorry, you probably didn't want a full monologue. Just to see the interesting sights around clan starlight, right?"
"No no, the monologue was fine. In fact, I imagine that a tour of the sights might be made better by more such monologue if you have time?"
"Well I do need to go fishing eventually,but I could delay that to show you around ..."
"I have time. I could give you a hand with that, and get a tour without you having to rush?"
The two imperials smiled at each other. "You have a deal ..., I don't think I caught your name?"
"Soleil. I didn't catch yours either?"
"Jade."
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