nahum » Lair » Quilo

Quilo

(#8006368)

water gently laps against the shore

Familiar

Gold-Throated Sparrow

Energy: 47/50

Personal Style

Apparel

Skin

Scene

Physical Attributes

Battle Stats

Measurements

Length

6.49 m

Wingspan

4.47 m

Weight

504.46 kg

Genetics

Tan
Ripple

Cream
Striation

Robin
Capsule

Hatchday

Nov 22, 2014
(9 years)

Breed

Adult
Wildclaw

Eye Type

Wind
Common

Level 25 Wildclaw

Max Level

STR

108

AGI

DEF

QCK

INT

VIT

MND

Lineage

Parents

none

Offspring

none

Biography

Q U I L O
headstrong ▵ passionate ▵ relentless
guileless ▵ devoted ▵ impulsive

▼ you cannot buy the loyalty of one who once had nothing

'Q, hurry up! The kitchen is closin' and 'yer not gonna be able to get food til th' next tally!' Q's brother raced past him, flicking the young wildclaw in the ear on his way to the community soup kitchen.

Q hardly looked up from his work, knowing full well he had to finish balancing the ledger tonight if he and his siblings were to avoid eviction from their small room. His older siblings were still on the docks, and so long as both of them returned home with at least 15t each, then they would be able to put some aside, and maybe be able to afford some cloth for winter wear once the weather turned-

'Q, it's almost sundown, you should get back to Mr. Johnson's. You know how he is about being late.'

Q blinked muzzily up at his older sister, squinting in the dying sunlight. 'Wha'? Did I fall asleep?'

I can't explain the state that I'm in
The state of my heart, he was my best friend

Eve huffed tiredly, puttering around their little home, removing her working clothes and splashing water on her sweat-soaked face. 'Not for long, little brother. I think you still have time to get back before nightfall. I just got home. Did you make it to the kitchens today?'

He rubbed his eyes, blinking down at his work. At least he'd managed to finish the ledger, and she'd woken him in time. He scribbled a few final notes, closing the binder and rewrapping the leather cord around it securely. His charcoal pencil returned to its spot behind his ears, and he stood, stretching his sore joints. 'Yes, don't worry, I had plenty of time. I don't need supper tonight, I'm still full from earlier.'

His sister fixed him with a look, now cleaning her hands of the caked grit that accumulated from hours spent in the shallows, passing crates from ship to harbor. 'Really? Because Jasper told me otherwise. He told me Johnson offered you a small bonus if you checked his clerk's work in addition to balancing last week's ledgers, and that you spent all day bent over that desk trying to get all of it done.'

Q's ears blushed, caught in the lie. 'I'm really not all that hungry. I can go early tomorrow morning and beg a second helping from the kitchenmaids. Promise!'

Eve turned away from him to shuck her bag and work clothes into their hamper, finally unburdened. 'We have enough tonight to feed both of us and our siblings tonight. Borren's not coming home tonight.'

Already half out the door, Q hesitated, glancing back into the den with concern. 'Why? He's not working another overnight shift? I told him he can't keep working doubles, it'd be the third night this week, we can't have him getting injured-'

'No. He got work on a fisher. He'll be out at sea for two days or so.'

His eyes narrowed, knowing there was more to the story than his sister was letting on. 'We're not done discussing this. I know that's not the whole story. When the kids come back don't let them wait up for me, I'm going to be with Johnson for a while. I'll try to be back before you fall asleep.'

She nodded, already busy scaling and gutting the fish she'd brought home for dinner. 'Be safe.'

Mister Johnson was always irritable, years of bitter haggling and hauling packed goods having hardened the already gruff veteran into a tough taskmaster. Still, having grown up in the alleyways and slums alongside the harbor himself, he was far more tolerant of the street urchins who often begged him for work, and did his best to pay fairly when he had the coin. He didn't look up from his shelving when the door's quiet chime sounded, pulling another bag of grain from the crates stacked in the back of his store.

Into the car, from the back seat
Oh admiration in falling asleep

'I have the ledgers sir, and I looked over the numbers you wanted me to.'

The old guardian hmm'd, hefting the bag up on the shelf with a grunt. 'Well, son, tell me what you think, then. I know you have more to tell me.'

Q flicked his tail from side to side, claw worrying the leather cord holding the files together. 'Last week was a profit, albeit a small one. Your supplier will likely increase his prices next week, supply for hemp rope always goes up during storm season. You should increase your prices by 15% to ensure you don't take a loss.'

Johnson chuckled, finally turning to look at the young wildclaw in front of him. 'Q, you know that's not what I'm asking about. I've lived in the Edge for longer than you've been alive, I'm well aware of the seasons shifting. What about the numbers I sent for you to check?'

Young white eyes met the shopkeeper's, before skating away. 'It... I see why you asked me to take a look, sir. There are some inconsistencies.' Q's hands tightened on the ledger, before he held it out to his employer. 'I marked them with my sign, and wrote the corrected totals along each page.'

The older dragon's eyebrow raised minutely, accepting the tome back with another grunt. 'Nervous, boy? It's not your work I've found trouble with.' He strode behind the counter, pushing aside the curtain that separated the front from the storeroom. 'Lock that door for me, young'n, and come show me what you found.'

All of my powers, day after day
I can tell you, we swaggered and swayed

Q's claws turned the brass lock with a snnrck, and followed the shopkeep mutely. He'd worked for Johnson since he'd first learned his letters and arithmetic from his older sister, first as an errandboy, then hauler, and now assistant clerk. The guardian knew him well, knew his tells. Q padded across the dusty floor, settling in a chair across his employer's small desk once he passed the curtain.

Johnson was already peering at his work through his reading lenses when Q finally settled, wrinkled eyes moving quickly from line to line, turning the page every few seconds with a long clawtip. He mumbled a few of the numbers to himself, brow raising at a few. His gaze roamed above the lines of calculations back up at the orphan in front of him, and he stroked his chin deep in thought. 'So it's as I feared, hmm. The old snake's been skimming the totals.'

Q's young face twisted into a grimace, looking away from his searching eyes. 'If I'd seen his work earlier, I would have caught it, but you know how he felt about me checking his work. Now I suppose I know why. He's careful, but I know what to look for, I've seen it enough in the records I used to check for my brother's dockmaster. If I hadn't learned my arithmetic from someone who saw counterfeited logs every day on the job, I wouldn't have noticed him padding the costs. It's written like it's tiny errors, sir, but it's not accidental.'

The veteran shopkeep laughed under his breath. 'Accidental, hah, as though that old snake would let an opportunity like this past his little beady eyes.' His claw drummed on the scratched desk, flicking through a few more carefully marked pages. 'Well, I suppose I'll have to find someone new to take on my daily ledgers. That sekestra won't be able to hold charcoal once I take his fingers as payment for his theft, heh.'

The younger dragon paled. Johnson didn't make idle threats. He'd known it would come to this- no one could survive in the Edge's harbor district without a certain level of viciousness, and everyone knew the punishment for stealing, much less deliberate forgery. Johnson had owned his store for three decades, inherited from his master, who had been equally as cutthroat. Nevertheless, Q had never before seen the old man's calm violence firsthand. He knew the clerk well, and while he'd never favored the old spiral, he didn't relish the thought of him in pain.

'Well, I suppose I have quite a bit to consider, then. Payment's on the counter, lad, and take a pound of jerky with you as your bonus. I doubt you had time to make it to the kitchens today.' Q's stomach rumbled on cue, and the guardian chuckled. 'Make it two pounds then, you make a compelling argument. Hurry home, son.'

Q murmured a quiet thank you, collecting his wage and bonus gratefully before slipping back out into the darkened streets. He'd be able to send his sister to work tomorrow morning with jerky, an uncommon luxury. Maybe when Borren returned from sea there would still be some left for him to bring to the docks as well.

Deep in the tower, the prairies below
I can tell you, the telling gets old

Eve was darning their siblings' shirts when he returned, callused hands stilling when Q stepped into the doorway. 'That took longer than it usually does. Did everything go well?'

Q dropped the bag of jerky on the counter, eyeing the covered plate aside the fireplace. 'He had me review some of the ledgers his head clerk had worked on. The spiral? Mr. Lewis?'

His sister's brow raised in surprise. 'Really? Lewis has worked for him for years. Is he getting lazy in his old age?' She motioned towards the little sack. 'I can smell that from here, fetch me a piece. You must have given him some valuable news, for him to have paid you so well. This was in addition to your regular wage?'

Q handed a piece to his sister, taking the leftovers of that night's stew for himself. 'Yes, as a bonus. I wish it were simply laziness that earned me a reward. You know full well no boons come to urchins without cost though. Lewis may very well not survive the dawn.'

Eve grimaced, taking the jerky gratefully. 'I was worried you'd say that. He manage anyone else's ledgers, or just Johnson's? There'll be hell to pay if there are others he conned.'

'I think he helped with Madam Silber's monthly expenses, but her girls don't let others touch their coin. I doubt he could have cooked her books as well. Not that it'll save him. If he's half as smart as he is greedy, he'll be out of Heaven's Edge by dawn. You know even the Guard looks the other way when it comes to punishing thieves, and the Guilds outright encourage it. He's not wealthy enough to bargain his way out of this mess.' Q sighed, his exhaustion catching back up with him, plate emptied.

Terrible sting and terrible storm
I can tell you the day we were born

'I'm too tired to grill you about this fishing contract Borren signed, but you tell me before you leave for the docks tomorrow morning. If he's done something foolish better I know now and have time to prepare for the aftermath than be surprised when it doesn't turn out the way he hoped.'

Eve smiled, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. 'You sound more and more like mom every day, y'know. She would have said the same thing.'

My friend is gone, he ran away
I can tell you, I love him each day

Q nestled down beside his younger siblings, gently arranging them so his larger form provided the smallest with a bit of extra warmth. 'Well, she's not here to say it, so someone has to. Come nest with us, the twins need the warmth.' He closed his eyes, feeling his younger siblings curl under his wing gratefully in their sleep.

'In a moment, brother. I have a few more stitches left. I'll sleep soon.'

Though we have sparred, wrestled and raged
I can tell you I love him each day
Terrible sting, terrible storm
I can tell you...

─theme: the predatory wasp of the palisades is out to get us by sufjan stevens ─

xxxxxxxxxx

Naga, the heir of the Valley

Osyen, the besotted protector

Rene, the loyal healer

Quilo, the young scholar

Nereus, the golden prince

Riven, the hesitant accomplice

Zenith, the grieving avenger

Samtara, the weeping river

Eve, the vicious handmaiden

Galao, the charming veteran

Circe, the travelling seer

Leah, the bright-eyed pathfinder

xxxxxxxxxxx

─coli build: roost/pools brawler ─

scatterlog: leaf/purple/tangerine > storm/sable/aqua > pistachio/clay/raspberry > tan/cream/robin

click through for artist credits | banner credits

If you feel that this content violates our Rules & Policies, or Terms of Use, you can send a report to our Flight Rising support team using this window.

Please keep in mind that for player privacy reasons, we will not personally respond to you for this report, but it will be sent to us for review.

0/1000

Click or tap a food type to individually feed this dragon only. The other dragons in your lair will not have their energy replenished.

Exalting Quilo to the service of the Earthshaker will remove them from your lair forever. They will leave behind a small sum of riches that they have accumulated. This action is irreversible.

Do you wish to continue?

Name

Names must be longer than 2 characters.
Names must be no longer than 16 characters.
Names can only contain letters.

Name

Names must be no longer than 16 characters.
Names can only contain letters.