Creative Corner

@Violetah I love it! That's so good :D

[center][b][size=4]Day 37[/size] Leader: Nasae[/b] [size=1]@Kyrinasha @KCSquib @Caelyn @Tadi @Verdant @Silverhame @Ximena @MoonlitMage @Deathwolf555 @Nekasrof @Muddledsketches @luckgandor @Violetah @Ezmara @xxWolfii @tigressrising @Neroli @Petall @DragonDraws @Tiirran @Emordnilap @Blackstone359 @clarax @Chelo @Amongthestars @Stormhawke @ilimati @PyroWyvern @Pandademic @aliciawonderland @TinPinLyn @Karrikut @CrAZDragon @LilacsandFreedom @catmeow1 @SquishyJellyfish @Kavryn[/size] [b]Pulls:[/b] [item=ambush] Sentence: Death Streak Roll -----[/center] Ripfang was traveling at the back of the pack when he noticed something moving out of the corner of his eye. Knowing there were no packmates behind him, he whirled around in a defensive pose, ready to fight... a doll. It tilted its head at him. "The mimic from the clock," Ripfang snarled. "How'd ya follow us this far? [i]Why?[/i]" The doll, of course, did not respond. It gave no indication of even hearing Ripfang. It started to trot after the rest of the pack (which had just started to notice that Ripfang had stopped), but Ripfang moved to block the doll's path. The doll turned to walk around Ripfang. Ripfang slashed at it, his claws ripping huge gashes in the cloth. At the same instant, from the front of the pack, he heard a scream. The doll momentarily forgotten, Ripfang rushed to see what was happening. Adalon lay on the ground, blood pouring from a wound on his side. Everyone else was frozen in shock and confusion. Ripfang stopped for a moment, too, but recovered quickly. "Do somethin'!" he barked. This spurred the others to life. Nasae and Allendis rushed to undo Adalon's trident holster. Agate jumped forward to work her magic. Allendis ran off to the nearest stream, searching along his way for something to carry water back. After only a few moments, Agate turned, anguish on her face. "Something's wrong," she cried. "I can stop his bleeding, but I can't close his wound!" Ripfang stepped forward. He didn't know much about healing magic, but he knew about surviving injury. Maybe he could help- At the sight of Adalon's wound, Ripfang's blood turned cold. Four gashes stretched across Adalon's entire side. Judging by his breathing, one of them had hit his lung. But that wasn't what froze Ripfang - it was the shape of the gashes. Like a giant dragon had cut a single claw slash across Adalon's side. Ripfang stared down at his own claws. At the threads caught between them. Then at the patchwork Mirror doll that had been following them for the past few weeks, standing idly right where he'd left it, stuffing leaking out of the holes that Ripfang himself had torn into it moments ago. Ripfang stormed over to the doll. "Ye're a poppet," he growled. "Bidin' yer time. Look what you've done!" The doll, as always, didn't respond. Ripfang angrily raised his paw, about to destroy the doll and give Adalon a quicker, more merciful end - and stopped. Something about the doll had changed. Ripfang looked closer. Threads moved back and forth on its body. The doll was stitching itself back together! [i]Of course,[/i] Ripfang thought bitterly. [i]So's once it's taken one victim, it can find another and do the whole thing all over again.[/i] But it hadn't killed its victim this time. Not yet. Ripfang turned and yelled at Agate: "Try again!" "I can't!" Agate sobbed. "I've done all I can do." "Jest try!" Ripfang roared. Agate put her paws back on Adalon. Adalon's breathing slowed, getting shallower and shallower. One last stitch repaired the doll. For a moment, everything stilled. Then Agate's magic started working. She watched in amazement as the gashes in front of her knit themselves back together. Adalon stirred, coughed, and took a deep, shuddering breath. Adalon struggled into a more upright position. He tried to stand, but as soon as he raised his head, he wobbled and quickly lay back down. He twisted to stare at his side. "Thassa lot of blood," he mumbled, coughing again. "Is it mine?" Agate nodded. "You're fine now," she reassured him, "but you're not gonna feel great for a little while." At that moment, Allendis returned with some water. As he washed the blood away from Adalon's now-healed chest, Ripfang stalked forward, furious, dangling the Mirror poppet by its tail. "We," he announced, "have us-selves a problem." ----- -No death streak today. -whoops this is friggin' long for a single fake-out death streak pull Oh Well

@Leopardmask

Well, that's certainly an interesting turn of events. Glad no one died, though.

[center][b][size=4]Day 38[/size] Leader: N/A[/b] [size=1]@Kyrinasha @KCSquib @Caelyn @Tadi @Verdant @Silverhame @Ximena @MoonlitMage @Deathwolf555 @Nekasrof @Muddledsketches @luckgandor @Violetah @Ezmara @xxWolfii @tigressrising @Neroli @Petall @DragonDraws @Tiirran @Emordnilap @Blackstone359 @clarax @Chelo @Amongthestars @Stormhawke @ilimati @PyroWyvern @Pandademic @aliciawonderland @TinPinLyn @Karrikut @CrAZDragon @LilacsandFreedom @catmeow1 @SquishyJellyfish @Kavryn[/size] [b]Pulls:[/b] [item=scholar] Sentence: Death Streak Roll -----[/center] When the pack next encountered another wandering band of Mirrors, they were understandably wary. But this new pack was not cruel, nor did they attack others for their differences. Instead, the two joined together for a time, running as one pack. Neither invested energy into learning about the other; when three days passed, their familiarity was as though they had only just met. But they were friendly, and when, a few days later, the two packs separated and went their separate ways, they felt a brief twinge of loss. It wasn't until the others had disappeared from view that the pack noticed: someone was missing. Agate was the first to speak up. "Where's Ptah?" Ripfang looked toward where the other dragons had gone and shrugged. "Must'a run off with th' other pack. Surprised none o' them stuck with us." Howlite looked concerned. "Why? Did he want to get away from us?" "Nah," Ripfang reassured him. "It's jus' what packs do sometimes. Join, grow, split... nothin' against y'all, I'm sure. Jus' another Mirror, pack-born through an' through, doin' what Mirrors do." ----- -Death streak team was Adalon, Nasae, and Ptah. I'm tired of writing death scenes [s]have you SEEN how many battlestones Pinkerton is giving me omg you should see my backlog right now[/s] and I thought this would be a more fitting send-off anyway. Ptah will be up for grabs for the next however-long-I-feel-like, but he'll probably be in my den so he doesn't keep eating meat while in my lair. -I feel like this pack should have a name?? Probably not one they call themselves but one I refer to them as. Except I can't really think of a good name. But trying to write this "the pack/the other pack" thing without a) being confusing and b) saying the word "pack" an insane number of times was a bit of a challenge.

Oooo I like what you're doing with not making them all deaths! It's nice to have a character just written out every once in a while.

[center][b][size=4]Day 39[/size] Leader: Dawn[/b] [size=1]@Kyrinasha @KCSquib @Caelyn @Tadi @Verdant @Silverhame @Ximena @MoonlitMage @Deathwolf555 @Nekasrof @Muddledsketches @luckgandor @Violetah @Ezmara @xxWolfii @tigressrising @Neroli @Petall @DragonDraws @Tiirran @Emordnilap @Blackstone359 @clarax @Chelo @Amongthestars @Stormhawke @ilimati @PyroWyvern @Pandademic @aliciawonderland @TinPinLyn @Karrikut @CrAZDragon @LilacsandFreedom @catmeow1 @SquishyJellyfish @Kavryn[/size] [b]Pulls:[/b] [item=sweet songbird] Sentence: 20-25 battles in the Coliseum -----[/center] Adalon walked with his wings up, walling in the doll riding on his back. Smash sidled up to him. "You look ridiculous." Adalon sighed. "What else can I do?" "I'd like to run some tests on that poppet," Smash said thoughtfully. "I won't do it without your permission, though." "What kind of tests?" Adalon asked warily. "To see what will or won't translate to you when done to the poppet," Smash clarified. "Nothing dangerous, of course, but the tests might be painful or uncomfortable for you. The good thing is, we'll see exactly what the doll will or won't need protecting from. We might even find a way to destroy it!" She was getting more excited at the prospect. Adalon nodded slowly. "Let me think about it." Later that afternoon, it was Adalon's turn to sidle over to Smash. "Let's do it," he said. "But I want to be the one to do the tests. I'm the only one who will know how I feel." ----- [color=transparent]Note to self because I don't have my map: RNG says they move in A Direction.[/color]

oooo I can't wait to see where this goes!!!

[center][b][size=4]Day 40[/size][/b] [size=1]@Kyrinasha @KCSquib @Caelyn @Tadi @Verdant @Silverhame @Ximena @MoonlitMage @Deathwolf555 @Nekasrof @Muddledsketches @luckgandor @Violetah @Ezmara @xxWolfii @tigressrising @Neroli @Petall @DragonDraws @Tiirran @Emordnilap @Blackstone359 @clarax @Chelo @Amongthestars @Stormhawke @ilimati @PyroWyvern @Pandademic @aliciawonderland @TinPinLyn @Karrikut @CrAZDragon @LilacsandFreedom @catmeow1 @SquishyJellyfish @Kavryn[/size] [b]Pulls:[/b] [item=dusty cicada][item=bronze fabric scrap] Sentence: 10-15 battles in the Coliseum, Writing -----[/center] Adalon sat to watch the doll aimlessly wander, as it was wont to do. Smash kept an eye on it, too. “Why don’t ye just chuck that thing in a peat bog an’ forget about it?” Ripfang asked, stepping up behind Adalon. “Bogs don’ let anythin’ happen to their victims. Th’ poppet could sit there forever.” It was Smash who answered. “We don’t know if it will still transfer things that don’t hurt the doll itself. Carelessly tossing it into a bog might make it suffocate Adalon.” “You did say you wanted to test that,” Adalon pointed out. “It would be a good thing to try first – if it doesn’t do anything, then we can do what Ripfang is suggesting.” The pack had chosen a stream to rest nearby. Adalon and Smash led the doll down to the water’s edge. Smash called Agate over, to stand by just in case. Adalon picked up the doll. Keeping his gill slits firmly closed and breathing through his nose, he dunked the doll in the stream up to its neck. It looked around with what Adalon could imagine as curiosity, or possibly confusion. “You know,” he mused, “I can’t actually [i]feel[/i] much of what this little guy ‘feels’. It doesn’t feel like I’m standing in the creek with him right now, for one thing.” Smash considered this. “Interesting,” she said, with an expression that told him “Get on with it”. Adalon exhaled, and dunked the doll’s head underwater. Tentatively, he took a small breath. Immediately Adalon started coughing. He released the doll and stumbled back. Smash swiftly pulled the doll from the water, setting it on the bank to see to Adalon. Agate started to rush over, but Adalon waved her away. “I’m… fine,” he managed, coughing between each word. The doll’s feet made a faint splapping sound on the cobble banks as it ambled near, still dripping wet. After a few moments, Adalon’s coughing subsided. He cleared his throat, opened his gill slits to let in more air, and straightened up. He said nothing more, simply turned to Smash and shook his head. “Too bad,” piped up Ripfang, who had been watching from a short distance away. “It would have been a good idea,” Smash told him. “Like you said, it could have sat buried for years, decades even, without anything else even touching it.” “That’d be too easy,” Ripfang pointed out. “Never trust th’ easy way out when it comes ta curses like that. Whoever made them always thinks o’ th’ easy ways an’ blocks ‘em. Guess ya gotta keep th’ cursed thing around a little longer.” ----- -Ripfang might very possibly be the type to have instead told Adalon to “yeet the doll” -For some reason I’m hesitant to call the chest flap things “gills” even though that’s basically what they are. I went with that here, but only because I have [i]no idea[/i] what else to call them that sounds remotely okay.

[quote]"yeet the doll"[/quote] I'm dying!!! It's a pity that idea didn't work, it was a good one... But I guess curses aren't all that easy to shake!

[center][b][size=4]Day 41[/size][/b] [size=1]@Kyrinasha @KCSquib @Caelyn @Tadi @Verdant @Silverhame @Ximena @MoonlitMage @Deathwolf555 @Nekasrof @Muddledsketches @luckgandor @Violetah @Ezmara @xxWolfii @tigressrising @Neroli @Petall @DragonDraws @Tiirran @Emordnilap @Blackstone359 @clarax @Chelo @Amongthestars @Stormhawke @ilimati @PyroWyvern @Pandademic @aliciawonderland @TinPinLyn @Karrikut @CrAZDragon @LilacsandFreedom @catmeow1 @SquishyJellyfish @Kavryn[/size] [b]Pulls:[/b] [item=ambush][item=pauper larvae] Sentence: Death Streak Roll, 10-15 battles in the Coliseum -----[/center] Ripfang caught the attention of the pack and pointed toward a shape in the distance. [i]Unknown creature. Big. Possibly good prey.[/i] The rest of the pack acknowledged. They spread out, creeping forward under cover when they could, running across open space when they had to. As they got closer, they got a better look at the creature. It was as big as a Guardian, with shaggy fur and imposing antlers. It frowned, confused, sniffed the air, then turned toward them. [i]Lost surprise,[/i] Ripfang signed quickly. [i]Now![/i] The Mirrors leaped at the beast. It roared and swatted at them. A swing of its head hooked Rhyme on its antlers and sent her flying. She slid across the ground to a stop before getting up, dazed but mostly unhurt. "Savages!" the creature roared. Every dragon in the pack stopped in their tracks. "You talk!" exclaimed Ripfang. "So, apparently, do you," the creature growled. "That's more than I can say for the other two packs of your kind who have tried to hunt me like a Mammophant." Howlite rose out of his defensive stance and stepped forward. "We're sorry we attacked you. We've just... never seen anything like you and..." He struggled to continue tactfully. "What he means to say is," Allendis offered, "who exactly are you?" The creature harrumphed, blowing a lock of long fur out of its face. "I am a Seeker-Gaoler. A dragon like you, since you obviously couldn't tell. Clearly, I am one of the first to travel to this part of the world since our re-emergence." The Mirrors glanced at each other, confused. "A what?" The Gaoler sighed. "It doesn't matter, I suppose. All you need to know is that my race has been tasked with sniffing out and destroying the Shade wherever it hides. And now that I've met you, a few of you are of interest to me." "Is one of us Shade-touched?" Dawn asked nervously. "Quite the opposite," the Gaoler responded. "Since we went into hiding, the Shade has seeped its presence into almost every living thing in this world. Except..." Here, the Gaoler indicated Nasae, Dawn, and Agate - "for you three." Dawn looked relieved. "Why us?" "I thought you would know. A family trait, obviously, but I've never seen anything like that before." "How can you tell we're family?" Agate wondered. The Gaoler tapped its nose with one claw. "Easy. Scent is what we were made for. I smell that you two-" It pointed at Adalon and Howlite - "are also related, but this lack of Shade presence doesn't seem to affect you." "If it's a family trait," Nasae mused, "and it's about the Shade, then it might be because of our mother? We don't know anything about it, but she might." The Gaoler smiled. It looked like an attempt at a nice smile, but it wasn't very friendly. "Very well." The Gaoler noted Nasae's, Adalon's, and Howlite's green eyes. "You hail from... Windsinger's lands?" Howlite shook his head. "We're Nature-born." He pointed toward the great crown of the Behemoth, just visible above the horizon to the northeast. "That way. Deep in the jungle. Dunno exactly where, but if your nose is as good as you say you'll probably find your way." Adalon nudged his brother. "Just tell them everything, why don't you?" he whispered, a little harshly. "What if this dragon ends up wanting to hurt her?" The Gaoler turned north. "Thank you. Your mother may hold the key to ridding the world of the Shade's presence for good." ----- -No death streak today. -I made it through all of two battles in the Scorched Forest before I gave up and went back to the Path. I think we need a level 7 venue and need to call SF a level 8. It's ridiculous. -You may have noticed I took the little "Leader" thing out of the header recently. Or maybe you didn't notice because it never had any bearing on anything and even I tended to forget it was there. -Neutral pronouns for two reasons here: 1) Reasons(tm); 2) if no one in the pack has seen a Gaoler before, what are the chances they'd be able to immediately tell a male from a female?