Plasma

Phantom and Plasma are, as most twins seem to be, joined at the hip. Nearly everything they do is with each other. They know each other as much as they know themselves. Due to this fact, the two often cause trouble together. It has become a known fact amongst their family that if something has gone missing, there is a good chance that the twins are the perpetrators. Typically, doing so involves Plasma quickly proposing a plan and Phantom calmly working out the problems until it has become the perfect strategy for them to leave innocent enough that no one can connect the crime to them that would care.

While the two may work together very well and are always quite close, their personalities are nowhere near the same. Phantom, the elder twin, is a quiet, brooding type. His silence is an advantage, allowing him to easily sneak past unsuspecting guards or gather intel without so much as breaking a sweat. Of course, though, he is as mischevious and curious as his brother. He is the voice of reason between the two, often altering or even shooting down ideas that would certainly get the two of them caught if they tried to enact it without his interference. Because of this, he often tends to be overly cautious when in a heist to the point that it is debilitating.

Contrasting this, Plasma is bold and loud. He is quite the smooth-talker, often acting as a distraction while Phantom breaks into whatever they are trying to take. Plasma is the one that usually gets the twins out of trouble, always having some sort of alibi on hand in just about any situation. He is also the more creative twin, coming up with ideas and different perspectives that Phantom would never have thought of in a thousand years. Although, being the more emotional one, Plasma is prone to overconfidence, jealousy and other emotions that could compromise him.

Although the twins have personalities as different as night and day, they work incredibly well together. Plasma is the one who creates plans, causes distractions so that Phantom can get in and out, and helps dispel doubts and prevents Phantom from freezing up with indecision. Meanwhile, Phantom keeps Plasma out of --too much-- trouble is the one capable of breaking and entering without so much as one dragon noticing, and is usually the one with more intellectual knowledge between the two. Without each other, they are incomplete. Unlike the rest of their family, the twins are inseparable.

The duo also shares a deep hatred of their elder brother, Wraith. Being the only Imperial child of Nightmare and Spectra, he is often treated with more affection by their father who is the same species. This has caused them to resent him, usually involving Plasma angrily ranting while Phantom silently agrees. They take any opportunity they can to spar with Wraith, trying to prove that they are better than him to Nightmare. The tactic isn’t the most effectual, though the two haven’t given up on it yet.

However, Wraith has no idea that the twins despise him. He treats them like he treats the other members of his family; with indifference, but enough tolerance to work together if need be. The twins’ elder sister, Mirage, does know. She cares about her siblings’ relationships as much as she cares about her siblings; not at all. The twins have basic respect for her, avoiding her if she avoids them. The fact that Plasma and Phantom are so close is a bit of an enigma in their family.

However, the twins have a friend outside of the family. Phantom and Plasma befriended a cheery Pearlcatcher named Lillathena. She has a bright and bubbly personality, something that Phantom and Plasma regard with perplexity. She is also quite trusting, something unheard of within their family. The twins met her while taking a shortcut through the Tangled Wood, accidentally crashing into her as they were flying. Lillathena was quick to forgive and offered to fly with them through the trees. Plasma readily agreed, Phantom accompanying him after a moment of hesitation.

Neither their parents nor their siblings knew of their new friend. Their family never paid much attention to the two, not wanting nor caring about getting involved with their affairs. Often, Phantom and Plasma return to the same location in the Tangled Wood where the trio had met, going for a quick-paced flight -once taking a swim at a lake- before talking about their day. Well, more like Lillathena asks what seems like dozens of questions per minute while Phantom or Plasma respond with curt answers, not willing to divulge too much information with the Pearlcatcher. Although their parents never paid much attention to their youngest children, they still taught them some ‘rules for survival’, one of which was to never trust anyone outside of the family. Although the twins are starting to open up to Lillathena, their wariness of her is still ingrained somewhere within them.

The twins trust her enough to join her on some riskier outings, though. Lillathena rarely takes the two to meet with Liriel, a friend of hers. The Skydancer is a fierce fighter, much to the delight of Plasma and Phantom. It’s also an added bonus that she had teamed up with Mirage and Wraith, giving the twins an opportunity to jeer at their elder siblings--more importantly, though, their elder brother.

While the team battles their way through venue after venue, Lillathena, Phantom, and Plasma watch from the sidelines and privately talk amongst themselves. Well, more like Phantom and Plasma hushedly speak to each other while Lillathena occasionally drops in as well. The twins often harshly criticize Wraith, pointing out every little mistake and improvement he could have made. Lillathena, meanwhile, simply believes it is constructive criticism of battle styles and adds her thoughts as well, not knowing the truth of why the twins really watch the fights. Liriel and Wraith have no idea, assuming they just enjoy getting caught up in the excitement of battle without actually being in it. Although Mirage does know about the twins’ vendetta against her brother, she frankly does not care as long as it does not involve her.

After the battle, the group of six go their separate ways. Mirage and Wraith leave with their respective loot while Liriel bids goodbye and leaves as well. Lillathena almost always accompanies the twins back to the forest, sometimes staying for a small chat before leaving. The twins typically like to stay there for a few moments, still energized from having a chance to insult Wraith. In that time, they fervently talk about how flawed Wraith is and how they deserved more respect from their father than an Imperial who was clearly not perfect. However, they would eventually come off their high and realize that it would take more than a few battle mistakes for Wraith to lose the respect of Nightmare.

To this day, Plasma and Phantom still do their best to outdo their older brother. The twins take any opportunity they can to show off their ingenuity, resourcefulness, strength and anything else they believe will sway their father. They also take the liberty of pointing out every single way Wraith is worse than them; not quite as crafty, more ‘bullish’ as they like to say, and there is only one of them while there is two of the twins. However, no matter what they do, Nightmare always has a stony expression when he actually pays attention to his youngest children.

While not trying to impress their father, Phantom and Plasma simply cause mischief for the fun of it seeing as how no one in their family pays any attention to the two. They rarely do anything serious enough to get them into trouble, and even when they do they always manage to lie and weasel their way out of it. If not trying to cause trouble, then they enjoy the company of one of the only dragons they know of in a positive light. The twins still often puzzle over why Lillathena is so kind to them, though they have mostly accepted the fact. The flights through the forest and watching their siblings and Liriel fight through horde after horde of beastclans in any venue is often a highlight of the day for them, being common enough that Phantom and Plasma can predict when Lillathena is next going to ask them to accompany her.

Even if they cannot impress anyone else, even if they lose their only friend, the twins still have each other. Their unbreakable bond has earned scoffs from their family at times, though it is true that separating them will be a feat most difficult. When they are separated, it has paid a toll on them. Plasma and Phantom work in harmony together, akin to a well-oiled machine. In most cases, though, if there is one then the other is definitely nearby. If one is missing, the whole mechanism falls apart. Even if they do not agree with each other all the time, they often come to the same conclusion and often seem to be able to tell what the other is thinking in a manner most unsettling. They have shown no signs of magic in their minds, though, just mischievousness. Nonetheless, as the twins continue to scheme, their plan continues to advance, whatever it may be. Phantom and Plasma are not ones to share that quickly something private and personal, after all. So, whatever their grand scheme may be, it has been a while in the making.

Lore by Neraida