Quests & Challenges

[center][font=Castellar]Day 56[/font] [item=Pressed Flower] @LadyOptimism @Stri[/center] "Liath. Where are you going?" He stopped, but didn't answer. "All alone. Don't tell me you want to look for Noise and Asani." He was silent. "It's been almost a week, Liath. They would be back already if they could." "They aren't dead, Mom", he rasped. "What makes you think that?" He fell quiet again. "I don't say you should give up on them. I can't stop myself from hoping either. But you should focus on Flavia now, like I'm focusing on keeping my family together. So if you're done being in mischief, I still haven't talked to Lou, and he's probably in an even worse mood." He sighed and nodded in defeat. Coral had been watching everyone closely. She wasn't incredibly bright, she knew that herself, but even to her it was obvious that no one paid attention to her if she kept quiet. So, it was an easy task for her to overhear almost every conversation. And to sneak out without anyone noticing. If they wouldn't save her friend, Coral just had to do that herself. The tundra's olfactory memory recognized Noise's scent immediately and led her to the place Ai and Lou had identified as the one where the dragons had disappeared. She gazed curtly at the black cloth that they'd tied to a tree in a desperate attempt to create a sign for the two if they wanted to return. Coral flapped her wings once, then twice, and tried to locate the scent. It was faint, but the mist held it in place. Time to leave.

Forgot to post yesterday... happens. [center][font=Castellar]Day 57[/font] [item=Ashfall Bat] @LadyOptimism @Stri[/center] "Tonight", Asani whispered. Thana nodded and disappeared into the shadows. They stepped out of the cave, half awaiting, half apprehending Kyan would be standing there, punctual as ever. But he wasn't there. They looked at the imperial questioningly. He snarled. "[i]Come.[/i]" Asani felt their heart drop. They followed him to a greate cave, at least big enough for both dragons to fully spread their wings. "[i]I'm in charge of your training today.[/i]", the imperial noted gruffly. "[i]I'm teaching you to search weak spots. What do you think, where would mine be?[/i]" Asani stared at the imperial's slim body and shook their head. "I don't know." Without skipping a beat, he pushed them over, fixed their legs in place and leaned down to meet their gaze. "[i]You better find out soon.[/i]" At the same time miles away, Liath was cowering next to a dragon's dead body. "It feels", he choked out in tears, "like they're all leaving us. You know? I couldn't even understand him, but... but..." Specs nodded ruefully. "I think it's better if we get going now. Come." "Why are you so calm about it?!" "I'm just as shaken as you are. I'd just prefer not to lose another friend." Number of battles: 42 Venue: Sandswept Delta Liath: Lv. 8 -> Lv. 9, Zephyr Acuity Fragment added Ai: dead Specs: Lv. 10 -> Lv. 11 Fennec: Lv. 10 -> Lv. 11 (What frustrates me about it: It wasn't even my fault. Ai was at full health, and he was totally [i]rocking[/i] it. But then, fifth-last battle, there was this stupid carmine serthis with a critical hit in its second turn... Sometimes, it seemingly can't be helped.) ----- [center][font=Castellar]Day 58[/font] [item=Silverside Tetras] @/LadyOptimism @/Stri[/center] [i]Run[/i]. That was the only thing on Thana's mind. [i]Run away[/i]. It had taken Asani two hits to knock the imp out. Two. One to pull away his feet and make him tumble, and one right on the head, with a stunning precision. She could barely believe her eyes, and she still couldn't believe that it had been so easy. Uh... well, define 'easy', though. There was a surprisingly big number of guards on the outside, and for a split second it had looked bad for the two of them. Really, really bad. That was until a dozen of imp hatchlings came running from behind like a wave of claws and hisses, startling the guards. Even better, just [i]overrunning [/i]them. Thana did the only thing that seemed reasonable to her. Run. She'd lost Asani somewhere on the battlefield, but she couldn't bring herself to turn around and look for them. She'd be able to find them later, surely she would, it was not like a dragon as large as a guardian was easy to miss, right? But on the other hand, they wouldn't be easy to miss for the guards, as well... Thana slowed down and slipped through what seemed to be a door, standing ajar longer than the empire even existed. Behind were a few walls, barely enough to withstand the wind, and so incredibly [i]white[/i]! Once the sun would be coming out, she'd be as easy to spot as a lint on a lab coat. She crawled under a broken piece of wall and decided to sit it out. This was enough to cover her for today, and she'd go look for Asani at night. That would be best. ...just why didn't the wildclaw show up? Number of battles: 38 Venue: Scorched Forest Asani: Lv. 8 -> Lv. 9 Thana: Lv. 1 -> Lv. 6 Flavia: Lv. 1 -> Lv. 6 (I don't even want to think about all the potions I used...)

[center][font=Castellar]Day 59[/font] [item=Jar of Vapors] @LadyOptimism @Stri[/center] Kyan steped into the prison cave. He was fuming with anger. "There's blood everywhere!", he snarled. As nobody answered, he tried again: "[i]Ceall[/i]! How comes I'm gone for a day and there is blood everywhere?!" No answer. He stormed deeper into the prison, briefly looking at every cave. No guards. No prisoners. "[i]CEALL[/i]!" Finally, he was standing in front of the deepest cave. Asani was gone. Ceall was laying in front of it, not bleeding, but unconscious. Kyan kicked him. "Hea! Stop sleeping, dumbshade!" The imperial coughed and blinked. "[i]Wha-[/i]" "How comes you're sleeping while [i]each [/i]and [i]every [/i]imperial is gone?! Even the ones I chained!" "[i]You sure you chained them?[/i]" Kyan leaned down and laid a claw loosely at Ceall's throat. "Stop. Kidding. Me." "[i]I don't know what happened.[/i]", Ceall hissed through clenched jaws. "[i]Your nephew knocked me out, maybe he forced one of the other guardes into charming the chains![/i]" "Sure", Kyan spat, but he threw back. "They can't be far. We got to catch them, or Al's going to kill us." With that and a last angered stare, he stomped back up. Ceall grinned and laid back. "[i]Poor me has a terrible headache and tried to stand up, but fainted. Yup, sounds good.[/i]" He closed his eyes and started snoring soon after.

[center][font=Castellar]Day 60[/font] [item=Obsidian] @LadyOptimism @Stri[/center] Thana stared at the mist. How long had she been staying here? An hour? Half a day already? All she knew was that she couldn't leave her hideout until the sun was gone. Carum was so [i]incredibly[/i] bright. Thana could just throw up. This was nothing like Rubrica. Nothing. Suddenly and without even noticing it at first, she was weeping bitterly. "I could go home now", she whispered. "I could. Nothing would stop me." But at the same time, she knew that there was no home she could return to. And that she could [i]not [/i]go. That she had no clue where Carum even was, and which way she'd have to take to get back to the capital. And even if she got there, then what? Being captured again? Thana sniveled. "Shade", she cursed weakly. "What great options I have." But at least she knew two things that were non-optional: first, surviving. And second, finding Asani.

[center][font=Castellar]Day 61[/font] [item=Firebelly Weaver] @LadyOptimism @Stri[/center] What Thana didn't know was that someone stared back. From the other side, from within the mist. And lucky for her, it was not an enemy. [img]http://flightrising.com/dgen/preview/dragon?age=0&body=75&bodygene=19&breed=8&element=2&eyetype=0&gender=1&tert=140&tertgene=8&winggene=19&wings=46&auth=39b3ba4edf49eae9ae88896d04a9e6b5702f4e65&dummyext=prev.png[/img] "This would make a nice drawing", Lysithea mused. A dark green and blue imp on the bright side, and a radiant orange imp on the darker side. Facing each other, not being aware they were wached. Was she being watched? Lysithea didn't know. But she'd seen Thana before, when they were still prisoners. Always sticking with that other dragon that wasn't an imp. She knew that even if she was being watched, she wouldn't be revealed. When nightfall came, Thana disappeared. Lysithea looked at the dark figure in the distance until it was gone. She considered following her, but on the other hand, she didn't exactly owe the other imp anything. Yes, she and her not-imp friend started the prison break, but to be honest, she could have done that herself just as well... She turned around and took a few steps deeper into the mist. She couldn't see well, so she wasn't actually surprised when she promptly bumped into something. It felt like a mossy tree or whatever, but she muttered a quick apology anyway and turned right. That was when the tree began to [i]speak[/i]. (I... honestly don't know how I ended up with another imp. And why I have way too many girls now. But she was just too pretty to resist...)

[center][font=Castellar]Day 62[/font] [item=Leopard Caterpillar] @LadyOptimism @Stri[/center] It was silent at the hideout. Something was missing. It had always been missing, as far as Flavia was concerned. She couldn't phrase what it was, but it annoyed her neverthless. Everyone was sitting in a circle as always when she suddenly got up. "Where are you going?", Liath asked. Flavia groaned in frustration. Stupid Liath. Always the overprotective, ever since she hatched. She'd been told that he'd found her egg left alone somewhere outside,- outside, where she wasn't allowed to go. "I've had it.", she said simply. "You've had what?" "This tragedy." Flavia snarled. "I'm not going to sit here any more. You're making me sick!" Liath got in her way, spreading his wings right in front of the cave entrance. "You're not going anywhere, young lady!" She paused. "Leave me be, Liath. I didn't ask you to judge every shaded step I make!" Out of all sudden, Lou stood at her side. He nodded at Liath. "I'll accompany Flavia. You may get out of the way now." Liath grumbled, but did as told. Flavia, however, wasn't satisfied. "Once we're outside, I'll kick you into a wall and run away, just so you know.", she hissed, addressing Lou. He shrugged. "Fine by me. But maybe you'd want to hear me out first." Number of battles: 25 Venue: Sandswept Delta Fennec: Lv. 11 Asani: Lv. 9 Lou: Lv. 10 -> Lv. 11

[center][font=Castellar]Day 63[/font] [item=Sublime Peacock] @LadyOptimism @Stri[/center] "Asani! Asani, oh my gods. Finally!" "Who- Thana! There you are. Stupid, why did you run away? You had me worried sick!" "Oh come on, if you're gonna be like that, I'm leaving." "Sorry, sorry. Heh, I'd never have imagned Carum to be [i]this [/i]big. But I really can't leave... it feels like flying against a wall. I need to get these cuffs off." "And that's the bad part. I honestly don't know how to. Anyway, let's look for a hideout. There are guards all over the city, looking for us." "I saw. I know a place near this one, and... wait. You've grown!" "No shade, genious." Number of battles: 42 Venue: Scorched Forest Liath: Lv. 9 -> Lv. 10, Discipline added Flavia: Lv. 6 -> Lv. 7 Thana: Lv. 6 -> Lv. 7, Mist Slash added (Okay, I'm gonna say it. Healers with Meditate/Discipline and high QCK are so insanely useful they almost feel like cheating. I need another one.)

[center][font=Castellar]Day 64[/font] [item=Always-Autumn] @LadyOptimism @Stri[/center] "Finally", Kyan hissed as he broke the imperial's neck. Ceall watched him with a bland expression on his face. "[i]So?[/i]" "That means we're even." "[i]If you say so...[/i]" The wildclaw bared his teeth. "Those guards are just useless. I wish the imperials would at least kill them. But if we keep going like this, it'll take us two more weeks to get the other four." "[i]It's gonna take us even longer; they're getting increasingly more careful.[/i]" Ceall yawned. "[i]My guess is about five months. Two maybe, if Alhertina joins us.[/i]" "Five. Months." "[i]Am I mumbling? And I didn't even mention your nephew.[/i]" "He won't get the cuffs off, I'll take care of him. You do something about the imps." Kyan dashed away. Ceall frowned. "[i]And what exactly?[/i]" Number of battles: 20 Venue: Sandswept Delta Flavia: Lv. 7 -> Lv. 8 Specs: Lv. 11 Fennec: Lv. 11 (Has anyone else noticed that Coral's still level 1? And she joined about 20 entries ago...?)

@Nargeorgicorn
Sure, gotcha! Thanks for reading!