@MaybeHuman Thank you! Here's my lore. It's continuing the story from here--skipping a chapter after those events. :3
(In my lore, only those who serve Black Ice have the Gembond gene)
Claudia flipped the shop sign to "Closed". She had long finished organizing the soaps, and was starting to get worried--Ira had been gone for quite a while. I knew she was suspicious about that customer, but this is ridiculous. She sighed, and was about to close the door--but then she saw someone racing toward her.
Claudia smiled and walked over to embrace her wife. "Where have you been?" she teased. "Hunting down that customer's love of scale polish?"
But then she met Ira's eyes, and saw they were full of thoughtful worry. "What's wrong, love?" Claudia asked. "Come in the shop and tell me what happened."
She walked Ira into the store and closed the door. "Now--" Before she could finish, Ira reached over and bolted the door, then shuffled the both of them further inside the shop. Claudia laughed. "Alright then. What happened out there?"
Ira glanced around suspiciously before continuing. "I followed that customer," she said quietly. "Thought maybe she was some new spy in town, trying to get us back to the organization."
"Well, I picked up that much," Claudia said in a teasing voice. "Not the first time you've suspected someone. And she was perfectly normal, right?"
Ira narrowed her eyes. "Not exactly. Thought she was living at a safehouse in town, but she didn't even go into town.
"Right after she left, she ran out of the city and started walking to the east, into the wilderness. Headed to the middle of nowhere. And--"
"And you followed her in case she was going to meet her boss," Claudia said. She knew how this went. "And did she?"
Ira shook her head. "She kept going! Didn't look back once. Just running toward the dead wastes."
Claudia raised her eyebrow. Now that actually was unusual. But still. . .
She sighed. "You have to stop doing this, love. Not every strange customer is--"
"I'm not done yet," Ira said. She continued. "I decided to turn around after that. She was going too far, but she still had the bugged bottle. I figured I could track her in the morning.
"But I wasn't the only one following our customer."
Claudia looked incredulously at Ira. "Who else was spying on this poor lady?" she asked, folding her arms.
"There was a Skydancer watching from the shadows," Ira explained. "Followed that customer's every move after she entered the woods. Didn't see me, I don't think."
"Why was she following her?"
"No idea. I didn't recognize the Skydancer--not a government spy. She has to work for someone else."
Claudia was silent for a moment. "So what do you think?" she asked.
Ira reached into her pack, and took out the remote. The bug was still active.
"We need to talk to Hawk."
Claudia raced to catch up with Ira, but Ira reached Mirna's Meats first. She barged into the butcher shop, and found Mirna chopping the legs off a dodo.
"Oh, hey Ira. Claudia," Mirna said. "Do you want an order today?"
"We actually want to talk to Hawk," Ira said. "Is he around?"
Mirna raised an eyebrow. "I'll go see if he's upstairs," she said. "Why do you want to talk to him?"
Claudia glanced at Ira. She was asking herself the same question.
"It's urgent," Ira said, giving nothing away. "Can you go see?"
Mirna nodded. "Alright. One sec."
She walked upstairs, and was soon out of sight.
Claudia turned to Ira, who was staring at the stairs with laser-focused intensity. "So why do you want to talk to Hawk?" she whispered. "Him of all dragons!"
Ira opened her mouth to answer, but at that moment, Mirna came back down the stairs. "Go on up," she said, and returned to her chopping.
"Thanks." Ira walked quickly up the stairs, with Claudia racing behind her. At the top, one of the doors was open, and Hawk was standing there, smiling.
Claudia stared at Hawk--somehow he looked worse than when they'd last seen him. Rumor was he didn't know how to bathe, despite Claudia's past attempts to teach him proper hygiene, and that he never, ever left the shop.
He was known in town for a few things: (1) being the only dragon willing to apprentice at foul-smelling butcher shop, (2) having the maturity of a hatchling and the paranoia of a spy, (3) a tendency to ramble bizarre tales for hours on end, and (4) his strange, ice-like scales, which glittered on his skin and (people swore) were melting away.
"Mirna said you need to talk to me," Hawk said. He giggled. "Do you want to hear about the kingdom?" I can bring snacks for us!"
"No thank you," Ira said. "I actually came here to ask you something important."
"Important?" Hawk widened his eyes. "I'm not in trouble, am I?"
"No, nothing like that," Ira said. "Can we sit down?"
"Of course!" Hawk smiled. "I haven't had friends over in so long!"
He led them into his tiny room, and they all sat on the floor. The room was mostly barren, aside from a packed bag sitting near the door.
"So what do you need?" Hawk asked, smiling.
"I need you to be serious here," Ira said. "This really is important."
Hawk nodded. "Right. Of course. Please go on."
Ira took a deep breath. "I saw a dragon today with scales just like yours," she said, pointing to the icey shards on his wings.
Hawk gasped. "But that's impossible! Black Ice put them there!" He jumped up and looked around the room. "He's not here, is he? Has he come for me?!"
"It's just us here, Hawk," Claudia said, trying to remain calm. "There's no one coming for you."
Hawk turned around and stared at her, trying to judge if she was telling the truth. Finally, he sat back down. "What did this dragon look like?" he whispered.
"She was a brown Skydancer," Ira said. Claudia saw her watching Hawk's reaction closely. "Pink wings and tail. And flecked with ice shards, just like yours."
Hawk gasped, bolting up again. "Sakura? You saw Sakura?"
"So that's her name," Ira muttered. She looked up at Hawk. "Do you know why she was following--"
"Has she come for me?!" Hawk cried. "Why else would she be here? I'm not going back!"
"She wasn't here for you," Ira explained. "She was following a new dragon in town, who ducked into our shop before racing off into the woods. That's where Sakura was."
Hawk nodded. "So someone's escaped the kingdom. . ."
Claudia just managed to hold back a sigh. Here we go again. . . You could never talk to Hawk without him tying in those strange stories.
"But if Sakura followed them, then the other gods will know soon," Hawk said. "And then the king will know soon too. Or will that dragon tell the kingdom where they were?"
"Where is this kingdom, Hawk?" Ira asked. Claudia looked at her in disbelief. Why was she encouraging this? Unless . . .
Hawk glanced down at them, as if just remembering they were there. "It's to the east," he said. "A few day's journey, give or take. People think it's not around anymore, but I was there! And if you saw Sakura, then it's still alive--I have no doubt."
Hawk frowned. "You're not thinking of going there, are you?" he whispered.
"Is it dangerous?" Ira asked.
"Dangerous?!" Hawk exclaimed. "They kill outsiders! First Storm will skin your hide the moment you set foot there!"
Ira nodded thoughtfully. After a moment, she stood up. "Thank you, Hawk. You've really helped."
Hawk smiled brightly. "Helpful! I'm so glad!"
"It's getting late, so Claudia and I better get going," Ira said.
Claudia stood up. "Yes, we'd better get home. But have a good night, ok Hawk?"
"I'll try!" Hawk said, laughing. "See you later, you two!"
Ira took Claudia's hand, and led her out of Hawk's room. She didn't speak again until they were back at their shop, the door's locked and the window's drawn.
"So you think our customer is from that . . . kingdom?" Claudia finally asked. "The one Hawk talks about?"
Ira nodded. "It's the only explanation I can think of. Why else would she be running into the wasteland? And if she is, it explains why the dragon watching her had ice just like Hawk's."
Claudia took a deep breath. "And what if this place isn't real?" she asked. "What if we just spent the last half-hour with a delusional dragon who has no idea what he's talking about?"
Ira took the remote from her pocket. The bug was now out of range, but it had recorded the customer's last tracked location. "It's worth looking into," she said simply. "I have a hunch there's something deeper going on."
Claudia nodded. "I think so too," she admitted. She sighed. "Alright. Any thoughts on what to do next?"
"Let's talk to Delta in the morning," Ira said. "She'll have some ideas. . ."
(In my lore, only those who serve Black Ice have the Gembond gene)
Claudia flipped the shop sign to "Closed". She had long finished organizing the soaps, and was starting to get worried--Ira had been gone for quite a while. I knew she was suspicious about that customer, but this is ridiculous. She sighed, and was about to close the door--but then she saw someone racing toward her.
Claudia smiled and walked over to embrace her wife. "Where have you been?" she teased. "Hunting down that customer's love of scale polish?"
But then she met Ira's eyes, and saw they were full of thoughtful worry. "What's wrong, love?" Claudia asked. "Come in the shop and tell me what happened."
She walked Ira into the store and closed the door. "Now--" Before she could finish, Ira reached over and bolted the door, then shuffled the both of them further inside the shop. Claudia laughed. "Alright then. What happened out there?"
Ira glanced around suspiciously before continuing. "I followed that customer," she said quietly. "Thought maybe she was some new spy in town, trying to get us back to the organization."
"Well, I picked up that much," Claudia said in a teasing voice. "Not the first time you've suspected someone. And she was perfectly normal, right?"
Ira narrowed her eyes. "Not exactly. Thought she was living at a safehouse in town, but she didn't even go into town.
"Right after she left, she ran out of the city and started walking to the east, into the wilderness. Headed to the middle of nowhere. And--"
"And you followed her in case she was going to meet her boss," Claudia said. She knew how this went. "And did she?"
Ira shook her head. "She kept going! Didn't look back once. Just running toward the dead wastes."
Claudia raised her eyebrow. Now that actually was unusual. But still. . .
She sighed. "You have to stop doing this, love. Not every strange customer is--"
"I'm not done yet," Ira said. She continued. "I decided to turn around after that. She was going too far, but she still had the bugged bottle. I figured I could track her in the morning.
"But I wasn't the only one following our customer."
Claudia looked incredulously at Ira. "Who else was spying on this poor lady?" she asked, folding her arms.
"There was a Skydancer watching from the shadows," Ira explained. "Followed that customer's every move after she entered the woods. Didn't see me, I don't think."
"Why was she following her?"
"No idea. I didn't recognize the Skydancer--not a government spy. She has to work for someone else."
Claudia was silent for a moment. "So what do you think?" she asked.
Ira reached into her pack, and took out the remote. The bug was still active.
"We need to talk to Hawk."
Claudia raced to catch up with Ira, but Ira reached Mirna's Meats first. She barged into the butcher shop, and found Mirna chopping the legs off a dodo.
"Oh, hey Ira. Claudia," Mirna said. "Do you want an order today?"
"We actually want to talk to Hawk," Ira said. "Is he around?"
Mirna raised an eyebrow. "I'll go see if he's upstairs," she said. "Why do you want to talk to him?"
Claudia glanced at Ira. She was asking herself the same question.
"It's urgent," Ira said, giving nothing away. "Can you go see?"
Mirna nodded. "Alright. One sec."
She walked upstairs, and was soon out of sight.
Claudia turned to Ira, who was staring at the stairs with laser-focused intensity. "So why do you want to talk to Hawk?" she whispered. "Him of all dragons!"
Ira opened her mouth to answer, but at that moment, Mirna came back down the stairs. "Go on up," she said, and returned to her chopping.
"Thanks." Ira walked quickly up the stairs, with Claudia racing behind her. At the top, one of the doors was open, and Hawk was standing there, smiling.
Claudia stared at Hawk--somehow he looked worse than when they'd last seen him. Rumor was he didn't know how to bathe, despite Claudia's past attempts to teach him proper hygiene, and that he never, ever left the shop.
He was known in town for a few things: (1) being the only dragon willing to apprentice at foul-smelling butcher shop, (2) having the maturity of a hatchling and the paranoia of a spy, (3) a tendency to ramble bizarre tales for hours on end, and (4) his strange, ice-like scales, which glittered on his skin and (people swore) were melting away.
"Mirna said you need to talk to me," Hawk said. He giggled. "Do you want to hear about the kingdom?" I can bring snacks for us!"
"No thank you," Ira said. "I actually came here to ask you something important."
"Important?" Hawk widened his eyes. "I'm not in trouble, am I?"
"No, nothing like that," Ira said. "Can we sit down?"
"Of course!" Hawk smiled. "I haven't had friends over in so long!"
He led them into his tiny room, and they all sat on the floor. The room was mostly barren, aside from a packed bag sitting near the door.
"So what do you need?" Hawk asked, smiling.
"I need you to be serious here," Ira said. "This really is important."
Hawk nodded. "Right. Of course. Please go on."
Ira took a deep breath. "I saw a dragon today with scales just like yours," she said, pointing to the icey shards on his wings.
Hawk gasped. "But that's impossible! Black Ice put them there!" He jumped up and looked around the room. "He's not here, is he? Has he come for me?!"
"It's just us here, Hawk," Claudia said, trying to remain calm. "There's no one coming for you."
Hawk turned around and stared at her, trying to judge if she was telling the truth. Finally, he sat back down. "What did this dragon look like?" he whispered.
"She was a brown Skydancer," Ira said. Claudia saw her watching Hawk's reaction closely. "Pink wings and tail. And flecked with ice shards, just like yours."
Hawk gasped, bolting up again. "Sakura? You saw Sakura?"
"So that's her name," Ira muttered. She looked up at Hawk. "Do you know why she was following--"
"Has she come for me?!" Hawk cried. "Why else would she be here? I'm not going back!"
"She wasn't here for you," Ira explained. "She was following a new dragon in town, who ducked into our shop before racing off into the woods. That's where Sakura was."
Hawk nodded. "So someone's escaped the kingdom. . ."
Claudia just managed to hold back a sigh. Here we go again. . . You could never talk to Hawk without him tying in those strange stories.
"But if Sakura followed them, then the other gods will know soon," Hawk said. "And then the king will know soon too. Or will that dragon tell the kingdom where they were?"
"Where is this kingdom, Hawk?" Ira asked. Claudia looked at her in disbelief. Why was she encouraging this? Unless . . .
Hawk glanced down at them, as if just remembering they were there. "It's to the east," he said. "A few day's journey, give or take. People think it's not around anymore, but I was there! And if you saw Sakura, then it's still alive--I have no doubt."
Hawk frowned. "You're not thinking of going there, are you?" he whispered.
"Is it dangerous?" Ira asked.
"Dangerous?!" Hawk exclaimed. "They kill outsiders! First Storm will skin your hide the moment you set foot there!"
Ira nodded thoughtfully. After a moment, she stood up. "Thank you, Hawk. You've really helped."
Hawk smiled brightly. "Helpful! I'm so glad!"
"It's getting late, so Claudia and I better get going," Ira said.
Claudia stood up. "Yes, we'd better get home. But have a good night, ok Hawk?"
"I'll try!" Hawk said, laughing. "See you later, you two!"
Ira took Claudia's hand, and led her out of Hawk's room. She didn't speak again until they were back at their shop, the door's locked and the window's drawn.
"So you think our customer is from that . . . kingdom?" Claudia finally asked. "The one Hawk talks about?"
Ira nodded. "It's the only explanation I can think of. Why else would she be running into the wasteland? And if she is, it explains why the dragon watching her had ice just like Hawk's."
Claudia took a deep breath. "And what if this place isn't real?" she asked. "What if we just spent the last half-hour with a delusional dragon who has no idea what he's talking about?"
Ira took the remote from her pocket. The bug was now out of range, but it had recorded the customer's last tracked location. "It's worth looking into," she said simply. "I have a hunch there's something deeper going on."
Claudia nodded. "I think so too," she admitted. She sighed. "Alright. Any thoughts on what to do next?"
"Let's talk to Delta in the morning," Ira said. "She'll have some ideas. . ."
Snapper babies are my weakness.
Read my clan lore, Kingdom of the Eldritch Eleven!
Read my clan lore, Kingdom of the Eldritch Eleven!
I don't have a continuation for that one yet, but I did write 
