Shining Gladiator's Helmet Trinkets This gleaming metal helmet bears craftsmanship that doesn't look entirely Longneck in origin. Did they have help creating this? 39 Circusmonster Nook honorable | valiant | loyal Arcane Runestone Dragonmade An ancient stone bearing the ancestral rune of the Arcanist. Such a find should be kept as a prized possession. 110 » The Warrior Prince » he/him » ♫ Theme Hibernal Starbear Familiar Guardian of the Starfall Isles. (Starfall Celebration 2014.) 0 » The Nox Guard » lawful good » ♥ Fairytoes

This guardian's charge is his clan.

Unbeknownst to Circusmonster, he had been born at the beginning of chaos. Prior to his existence, his father had been the king and founder of the lair and clan known as the Crystal Nook. His father, Hydra, had fallen from power as the founding queen Arjibi took a new mate, and Hydra did the same in turn. Named for this clown gene and monstrous size as a Guardian, Circusmonster was born and raised in the clan he remains in.

He was among the first to be born to a new mother, but he was far from the last. Many, many siblings followed, yet they were all bestowed with the honor of being exalted to the Arcanist. At first, he wondered why he wasn't blessed with the destiny to meet the Arcanist, but Circusmonster came to understand that he had been chosen to stay behind for the equally noble task of producing more offspring for the cause.

As established, however, that was only the beginning of the chaos. Eventually his mother shared the same exalted fate as his siblings, and his father was sent to live a shameful life of exile in the darkest part of the cave in which they lived. Like his father had been, Arjibi had also been dethroned and banished, as two foreign rulers took control of the lair. Though he wanted to help his father, he had to know his place and fulfill his duties for the time being, painful as it was to imagine a Guardian like his father so ashamed. He assumed that he and his father shared the same Charge: the clan, the lair, and the safety of it. Like the other dragons in the Clan of the Crystal Nook, Circusmonster had an Aura. This Aura has a strong and determined, but kind feeling that gives you a sense of his commitment to honor.

Thus, Circusmonster took to the task of being one of the three warriors who fought on behalf of the clan and sought to protect it. At his side were two Nocturnes, Bananabread and Skywinder, and so they formed a team known as the Nox Guard, with Bananabread coming to be the leader of it. He didn't care which of the three were leader, as long as he had the honor of being a warrior with the ability to protect his charge and fight in memory of his father who he had not seen since his banishment.

With his proud position as warrior on the frontline secured, it was time to do what he had stayed behind for. A beautiful Arcane princess, a graceful Skydancer by name of Fairytoes, is who had caught his eye. She had come to be known as the mystic scribe, as she was able to bring direct word from the Arcanist through enhanced magic and psychic power. With her dedication to and connection with the Arcanist, Fairytoes was brimming with Arcane pride and appeal, and Circusmonster fell head over heels for her. She accepted his courtship, becoming his lovely lady-in-waiting, and they bonded over their passion for Arcane Honor, thrilling Circusmonster to no end that the Arcane deity was so closely connected. The pair was Arcane-Strong, and both knew the most noble thing that should happen. That being said, they had many offspring, most of which were exalted. Circusmonster's hopes that his young would fulfill that fate were realized, for he knew that not only would this make his children honorable, but the gesture would help Arcane dragons everywhere.

After a long day of moving hostile Beastclans out of their territory, the Nox Guard returned home, with the two Nocturnes departing for each of their dens, and Circusmonster making for the area which he and Fairytoes shared. He found his Arcane princess being protected by a Hibernal Starbear, much to his surprise and delight. Circusmonster knew that this creature was considered the guardian of where they lived, the Starfall Isles. He coaxed the creature to join him as his familiar, as the bear was already taking it upon himself to serve in the clan. After quickly earning the bear's trust, Circusmonster wandered to the mouth of the cave and looked upwards, where the Arcanist's Observatory could be seen pressing against the starry night sky. He thanked the Arcanist for sending the Hibernal Starbear to them, and for the opportunity to be so honorable.

Though Circusmonster had been successful in being a protector, a father, and feeling as though he had been blessed by the Arcanist, the lair was not as wonderful as his oblivious pride made it seem. The foreign rulers who banished his father had all but destroyed the lair. In their rule by scare tactics, the rest of the lair had become increasingly disorganized and oppressed. Beyond Circusmonster's blind pride in the Arcane, there was a great depression in morale and resources. The whole lair was on the brink of collapse: many dragons had no jobs, the only paltry income came from exaltation of young and dragons seemed to hibernate until it was time to produce eggs for profit. No... It couldn't be...

Circusmonster's world momentarily came crashing down as he realized that the offspring he had been sending to exaltation for the purpose of honor, were nothing more than meager income for the foreign king. Everything Circusmonster had done had been meaningless to a cruel and undeserving false king, and he could feel the disrespect and dishonor strike through him like lightning, causing him to recoil in horror. He refused to believe that the Arcanist would be proud of how the Crystal Nook had become, and he was foolish to have been loyally serving a false monarchy while the rest of his clan suffered. Like his father, he had failed to keep his charge safe. Father...

If true heroes always serve the greater good, then it was past time for Circusmonster to do what was right. No longer was the false king's well-being considered most important.

The shared sentiment seemed to be growing in the lair, proven when Bananabread rounded up the team to make an announcement. The Matron of War had been approached by a group of rebels with a plan to restore power to the original monarchy. The alchemist, the gamemaster, and the treasurer were to be hard at work creating, earning, and setting aside the treasure necessary to achieve genes scrolls, while it was asked of the Nox Guard to obtain one gene scroll. Bananabread led the other two into battle in search of Python, a gene that would be given to Hydra. Skywinder went along with the plan with ease, and Circusmonster had once again been blessed with the opportunity to restore his honor by helping his father. Every day for weeks on end, the Nox Guard took to the wilds, slaying and foraging for the elusive gene.

The rest of the rebels soon completed Arjibi's new appearance, though it was longer before all of Hydra's genes were finally obtained, and Circusmonster was present when they bestowed the genes to him. Bananabread hid the three scrolls under her tucked wings as she, Skywinder and Circusmonster visited Hydra. It had been years since Circusmonster saw his father, and he knew that no matter what happened, he would have to stay strong. As they entered the deep cave room that Hydra resided in, they saw the fallen king curled up pathetically on the floor, before he looked up and realized who stood before him.

"Son!" Hydra gasped and covered his face with his wing. "You must not witness my shame."

"Father," Circusmonster said, radiating with pride and honor regained from helping his father. "True heroes will always serve the greater good." With that, Circusmonster bowed on his knees.

"Son..." quietly said Hydra in despair. Skywinder stepped forward to explain their actions.

"Some of the dragons in the lair have been secretly forming a rebellion," he started. "We, the Nox Guard, the gamemaster, the treasurer and the alchemist, have all been working tirelessly to acquire the scrolls to raise you and the old queen back up - to breathe life back into you, to make you feel powerful once again." Hydra was speechless as Bananabread drew closer as well.

"With Chessa's earnings, Gilded's secret fund stash, Contagia's brew, and our work on the battlefield, we present to you, your scrolls." Bananabread opened her wings and the scrolls she kept tucked and hidden close to her body fell out and onto the floor in front of Hydra, who rose to his feet and gathered the scrolls.

"The old queen is already completely changed, you wouldn't even recognize her," Skywinder informed him. "Her Aura is more powerful, and once you use your scrolls, yours will be as well, my king. All of us rebels will soon meet to plan our attack on the false king."

As Hydra hesitated, Circusmonster smiled and reassured him. "Please go ahead, father."

The Nox Guard watched quietly as Hydra started to unfurl the scrolls that would restore his power. He spoke the magic incantations on each scroll: tertiary, secondary, then primary, and the genes started to become visible on his body as the scrolls turned to dust. Circusmonster watched his father as he breathed heavily, invigorated. Their eyes met, and he knew that this father had been inspired to reclaim his own honor.

Nearly a week afterwards, the rebels started to make a move. On the day that a newcomer joined their clan, Hydra and Arjibi slowly moved up the ranks, undetected. This new dragon had creepy and bizarre properties that blocked Aura and the detection of it - thus they were able to use her as a shield as they moved closer to the false monarchy. The Nox Guard could help harbor the progenitors even closer, and once there, the attack could commence. Ambushing the false king was priority, and they would need Aristheus, the Exalt Expert, to forcibly exalt him and the false queen in order for them to regain control of the clan. Though the false king's Aura was so violently powerful and sinister, Circusmonster was ready to do everything in his power to restore pride to the clan.

September came, and it was an eventful month with the Arcane holiday on the horizon. With all the Arcane pride he had harnessed, the Starfall Celebration was the most enjoyable time of year to Circusmonster. Uprooting the false king before the holiday seemed like the best time, so that he may once again take pride in and enjoy the holiday. The Nox Guard held their position outside of the royal court, just behind the Aura-Blocker, and everything was in place, except for Aristheus - an exposed coward. When initially approached with the concept of revolution, the Fae turned them down in fear of punishment from the false king. Bananabread swiftly moved and practically throttled the tiny dragon.

"We didn't come this far for nothing, Aristheus," she hissed. After some light bullying, Aristheus was thrust into the grand court of the king and queen. It was a huge, well-lit cavern, and at the back were the thrones where the faes lazed. It wasn't out of the ordinary for Aristheus to be in the room with them, as he was utilized as an advisor and informant, and so there was no suspicion.

"Aristheus, I didn't feel you arrive," the king said plainly. He didn't know it, but he was referring to the moment Aristheus passed the Aura-Blocker and his Aura became visible again.
"My king." Aristheus squeaked, feeling small. He was on the floor, and walked on all fours towards his fellow faes. "May I have a word with you?"

Outside, all that the rebels could do was wait, and hope that Aristheus would succeed in his exalting of the king. Standing before the monarchy, Aristheus reached to his side and thumbed through his books that rested at his side - quietly passing over general logkeeping, and taking his Book of Exalting. He hesitated with his hand gripping it, before he launched the attack.

Aristheus sprung towards the king in a powerful leap, tackling and knocking him out of his throne. In the scuffle, the king's crown clattered across the cavern and Aristheus used his whole body weight to keep him subdued as the king's violent Aura flared like an explosion. The Aura made Aristheus feel like death incarnate but he held him down. The queen was actually powerless and relied on the king, so her fight-or-flight kicked in, and she took flight. Hearing the commotion and knowing the final act was in play, Circusmonster stormed the room with the Nox Guard, cutting off the queen from the exit.

"Guards! Aristheus is a traitor!" The king screeched, but the Nox Guard stood firmly at the door. Realizing that a coup was taking place, the king suddenly and eerily calmed, and his Aura receded to an unfeeling state. The cavern was silent apart from Aristheus' panicked breaths and the queens small footsteps as she darted back and forth like a trapped beast.

"Then, may The Shade curse you all," were the king's final words, as Aristheus began to read the incantation aloud from his book. The King was then exalted, leaving behind his belongings. The queen could do nothing as Aristheus exalted her, and as she disappeared to serve a higher cause, her crown lay on the floor where she once had been.

Aristheus collapsed on the floor in an anxious heap as the Nox Guard left to break the news to the clan. "The false monarchy has been exalted," Circusmonster and the two nocturnes repeated several times throughout the lair. Circusmonster watched his father walk confidently with regained pride towards his mate, Arjibi, before they both walked to the cave mouth. They shared a moment there, looking out into the Starfall Isles for the first time in years, as Circusmonster watched proudly.


The clan celebrated the return of their benevolent leaders for the rest of the month, as Arjibi and Hydra took their place at the top of the lair once more. The Starfall Celebration coincided with the Crystal Nook's personal celebration, and the entire clan was filled to the brim with pride and joy. The king and queen nested together for the first time in years, and the hatch was during the holiday. They welcomed a new princess, Starlight, the firstborn of this clutch, and Circusmonster welcomed his new half-sister. Her birth and presence in the clan was a physical reminder of everything they had went through - she marked the dawning of a new age as the clan thrived.

The night of Starlight's birth, Circusmonster stood alone at the cave mouth, looking up at the Arcanist's observatory, and there, he prayed. He asked the Arcanist for forgiveness for serving the false king and dishonoring an Arcane lair, he thanked the Arcanist for everything he had done and inspired, and he vowed that with the progenitors back in power, that the Arcanist himself created, that exaltation would once again be sacred. The lair could once again devote themselves to the Arcanist with pride.

With the false monarchy gone, the clan's motivation and morale was bolstered. The gamemaster began to earn maximum treasure at an accelerated rate, all of which could finally be used for the benefit of every dragon in the lair. The bountiful daily treasure jump-started the clan's inner-economy and the lair was more active than ever as they prospered and revitalized more members with genes. Dragons acquired jobs, became well-dressed and expanded their territory as the future of the lair was now monetarily secured. It was well and truly a renaissance.

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