Day 2: Inconceivable!
Sentence: Writing, Breed/Scroll a Dragon
Sentence: Writing, Breed/Scroll a Dragon
"Somebody's following us," Larkin commented, looking over her shoulder at the water behind her.
"What do you mean? There's no boats, how could anyone be following us?" Topaz asked, straining over the tundra's shoulder in attempts to see behind her. All he could see was blue stretching on for miles.
"No, someone's swimming," Larkin corrected.
"Swimming? That's impossible!" Topaz exclaimed, "We haven't been near land for hours!"
"Can't water dragons swim?" Larkin asked, and Topaz cursed. Water dragons. He had forgotten that. Beneath their tiny little boat was a whole world he would never explore. Not that he had ever had the urge to visit the water flight.
"But what would a water dragon want with us?" Topaz asked.
"I don't know, but they're big," Larkin commented. Topaz moved behind Larkin to peer out over the boat, squinting in the sunlight.
Sure enough, Larkin had been correct. A hulking shape was steadily moving towards them, thick fur trailing behind him. Topaz cursed again, he recognized the figure pursuing them. It was that gaoler who had caught him on the cliffs of the Windswept Plateau.
"Is everything alright?" Larkin asked, eyes sparking with concern.
"Everything's fine," Topaz lied, not wanting to worry her, "Let's just keep rowing, maybe a little faster. We don't know what his intentions are."
"He?" Larkin asked, "Do you know this dragon?"
"No, let's just keep rowing," Topaz said quickly. The tundra knew better than to push.
Already exhausted from their travels, the pair soon found that even with their best efforts, the gaoler was gaining on them. Eventually, it become too much for them both the bear, and had to stop and rest. There was no escaping the relentless pursuit of the great dragon. Topaz could only watch helplessly as he caught up with them.
"Ah, thief, I have caught up with you!" The gaoler growled as he pulled himself onto the boat. There was only just enough room for his hulking form within, and his fur was dripping salty water, once again wetting the two dragons. Both of the smaller dragons had to cling to the side of the boat to prevent themselves from sliding out as it tilted to accommodate their large friend. Larkin held up the lantern to ensure the flame was not put out.
"Thief? What do you mean thief? We haven't stolen anything!" Larkin's sharp tone cut through the air as she glared at the gaoler, clearly not happy about getting wet again.
"Don't lie, I know what you did back at Windkeep Tower," The gaoler growled, "And I, Ulf, have vowed to not rest until I see you brought back to justice."
"She doesn't know," Topaz said quietly. Ulf whipped his head around to face the coatl. Topaz winced. Why had he said that? He should have lied too!
"Don't know what?" Larkin's trembling voice rose. Topaz didn't know how to respond, "What haven't you told me, Topaz?" Her voice was growing more desperate and frightened.
"Interesting, you really haven't told her," The gaoler's strange eyes sparked with interest.
"It's not important," Topaz said quickly.
"Really? Not important?" Ulf's eyes gleamed, "You were just going to fail to mention you had stolen an egg? What were you going to do when it hatched? Pretend you found the poor creature wandering alone?"
"An egg? Topaz, what is he talking about?" Larkin asked, eyes suddenly very frightened. "Tell me it isn't true!"
Topaz sighed. This was exactly what he had feared would happen. The fear and betrayal in her eyes cut deeper than any knife could. It pained him to do what he did next, but he pulled out his leather bag and slid out the egg. Larkin flinched as she saw its green form emerge, and she looked away, as though unable to bear the sight of it.
"Give the egg to me, I will return it to its parents," Ulf growled, holding out a paw.
"Oh, and how are you going to do that? Are you going to swim back?" Topaz challenged, pulling the egg away from the gaoler's grasp.
"The egg needs to be returned," Ulf growled, standing so he could use his height to tower over the coatl. The boat rocked violently as he moved, and Larkin cowered at the bottom, still not looking at Topaz.
"You can't!' Topaz said, looking away from Larkin and trying to ignore the way his emotions were running wild.
"It's not yours! What do you expect to do with it?" Ulf spat.
"It got cracked," Topaz admitted, "When we were caught in a storm. If this egg is going to survive, it needs to be handled very carefully. The hatchling inside is already at risk as it is."
At the sight of the crack, Ulf backed down. He crouched back down, stabilizing the boat once more.
"Very well, but once the egg hatches, I'm taking the child home," Ulf vowed, glaring at Topaz.
Larkin crept forwards, still not meeting Topaz's gaze. She only had eyes for the egg. Gently, she scooped it into her arms and curled herself around it.
"The egg needs to be incubated, I'll keep it safe," She murmured, still not meeting Topaz's gaze. Topaz nodded, feeling numb, as he watched her coddle the egg. He had to stop his heart from wanting to leap out of his chest. His emotions were certainly high. He was very glad they didn't have a skydancer among their number. He looked away, unable to bear it any longer, and turned to Ulf.
"Well, if you're going to join us, maybe put those muscles of yours to use and help us paddle!" Topaz hissed at the gaoler. Ulf rolled his eyes, but moved to take up the oars. To Topaz's satisfaction, they were moving much faster now, despite the extra weight. They would be reaching the Tangled Woods in no time. That's what he had to focus on, the journey ahead. Larkin would come around sooner or later, he reminded himself, it was one of the pluses to having such a terrible memory.
@CleverDual @HauntedWhale @Disillusionist @AlchemyFox @Tirtouga678 @catmeow1 @Leopardmask @Midwinter @chantric @Dynami @ShinyDecidueye @tigressRising @FallenEclipse
So, the starting trio is all together now!
I don't know how many of you have read my additional/adjusted rules at the bottom of the rules section (if you haven't, I'd suggest reading it so you know what's going on in this Pinkerlocke), but this is what it has to say on why I have an extra pull today and what I can do with it:
Quote:
[*]CleverDual will be keeping track of her familiar and apparel pulls and I have the option to use them if I so desire.
[*]If I get an apparel pull that I cannot use from breeding or scrolling, I may use it to hatch an unhatched egg from my vault or adopting a dragon from a reader's nest/lair.
[*]If I get an apparel pull that I cannot use from breeding or scrolling, I may use it to hatch an unhatched egg from my vault or adopting a dragon from a reader's nest/lair.
I will be forwarding this apparel pull to when I make the switch to Shadow on Saturday, so that I can use one of my new nests without worrying about delaying my move.
