∂яαgσηѕ яιѕιηg (rebooted)


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Setzer

10:59pm Apr 1 2019

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Posts: 2,156

Right. Ennie has never picked up and moved due to the presence of Hunters before. Of course, she would want to stay. Vincent tried very hard not to seem a tiny bit worried for his friend; she was more than capable of handling herself, and after seeing him get hurt, she would definitely be more careful.

 

“I understand,” he said, giving her a smile, “I’m the one they actually shot, so it’s probably me they’re looking for if any of us are being tracked. Besides,” he added, glancing at his arm, “I have a pretty good excuse to call in a sub for a few weeks.” The wounds would heal in the next few days, but he was still very shaken, despite having done this before. It had been decades since his last actual run-in with Hunters.

 

Sometimes, he still thought about it-- about… him.

 

Deep within his consciousness, Helios stirred bitterly. He said nothing in response to the rogue thought that crossed Vincent’s mind, but his resentment was clear, and the feeling was certainly mutual.

 

Vincent nodded in agreement with Ennie. “Apologies Reito, but I should probably go straight home. I don’t have a shirt,” the torn and bloody fabric had been safely disposed of by a nurse shortly before the cavalry had arrived, and Vincent was currently donning a hospital gown to cover his torso, “and I need a shower… and to sleep for several hours.”


The moon dragon, to his credit, didn’t seem at all phased by the separation of their little ragtag group. This time, when he shot forward to shove the scrap of paper with his number on it into Vincent’s hand, at least the blonde man had been prepared for it. He murmured a “thank you” and returned his attention to Ennie.


“I would definitely appreciate a ride,” the sun dragon smiled gratefully, gathering what was left of his share of the McDonald’s run and packing it neatly into the happy meal box, along with his solgaleo. “Come on Misty,” he ruffled the fur on the large cat’s neck before getting out of the bed, “it’s time to go home.”


The walk back to the car after picking up his medication was much easier than it had been a handful of hours ago. Misty trotted along beside them, brushing her tail against Ennie’s leg as she moved ahead to lead the way back to the bright green vehicle. Vincent paused at the side of her car, not knowing where to sit. “Where would you like me to get in?”
Malik

1:03am Apr 2 2019

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Posts: 620
Ennie fished her keys out and unlocked the Kona, eyebrow quirked as she obviously listened to her 'better half'. '...He and the Smilodon can ride shotgun,' Astley conceded. 'But NO funny business. No claws, no maws, end of discussion.' 

'Sir, yes sir,' she thought as she opened the front passenger side door for Vincent. "Congratulations, you've been upgraded to First Class!" She shut the door after her friend and walked around to the driver side, pausing slightly as she was certain she caught sight of...someone...ducking into the shadows of an alleyway across the parking lot. 'Must be my imagination...' she mused as she climbed into the driver's seat. 

'Maybe, maybe not.' Astley seemed equally on edge. 'Just keep an eye out, I'll do the same.' 

'...We uh we share eyes, Dingus.' 

'You know what I mean!' 

'Yeah yeah,' she smiled to herself as she pulled out of the parking lot. "So," she said to Vincent. "Do you have a preference for cabin music? Or do you wanna roll with my tunes? I don't offer this to a lot of people so you'll wanna think carefully." 

"It's fine," he chuckled. "Music is music, and there's very little of it I don't enjoy."

"Good answer!" Ennie replied as she flipped through her phone as they waited to pull onto the street, and Living Thing by Electric Light Orchestra filled the cab at a comfortable enough volume. "So, where exactly am I taking you?" 

"Just follow the highway and then turn onto West Avenue," he answered as Ennie pulled onto the street and followed the flow of traffic. "Keep on that road until you get to Fairview Heights. I live in one of the condos up there." 

"Really?" Ennie whistled low. "Those are some sweet digs, my man." 

"Thank you. It's is a lovely place to live." 

'Pfft, I'm sure it's not that fancy. And we make by just fine on your bean juice business wage.' 

'I never said we weren't making by, I'm just complimenting his place.' 

'That's so weird that you humans do that? I mean, you pretty up your abodes like some freaky, flightless, featherless birds! 'Oh, check out my nest!' 'Oh my, I love the colour! Is that Dapper Tan?' 'Yes! Check out the crown molding!' It's kind of ridiculous.' 

'All right, no more HGTV for you, noted.' Ennie frowned inwardly as she blinkered and turned off the highway onto West Avenue, following the winding road upwards and trying her hardest not to stare at the high-end homes in their fancy yards on either side of the street. This was definitely not their usual territory. "Just up here, Vince?" 

"Yes, just around the corner, there." he pointed as a trio of high-rise condominiums reached for the sky. "Mine's in the middle building." 

"Wow," Ennie commented as she slowed to a stop in the visitor-reserved parking area, looking out her window at the city lights spread out below. "Nice view!" 

"One of my favourite things," Vincent smiled as he opened his door. "Come along, Misty, we're finally home!" 

"Hey!" Ennie shouted just as he was about to close the door. "You'll let me know if that other hunter comes back? Call me the instant something strange happens. And I mean the instant, Vincent."

"Of course," he nodded seriously. "I promise. You as well." 

"Right, you got it. Have a good night. Buh-bye, Misty!" she shouted, making kissy noises as Misty chirped a cheerful response. 

'Gross.' Astley commented as she drove away after making sure Vincent made it inside the building okay. 'Don't tell me we're becoming a-ugh-Smilodon person!" 

'Maybe,' Ennie answered evilly. 'Maybe I'll get a dozen, just to start out. Get ourselves a good ol' Smilodon Farm going.' 

'Please no, you wouldn't! They-they dig in plants!' 
DreamWalker

8:45am Apr 3 2019

Normal User


Posts: 34
As Tucker was playing his flute, he saw the strange man walk up. He stopped playing and walked over to him, "hello sir, is there anything I can help you with?" Tucker asked in his friendliest voice. Tucker had seen the looks of disgust from the people in the crowd that the man was receiving. Tucker, not wanting a fight to break out, decided to tell the other people to back off by talking to this man and to see if his intentions were good. This man seemed to be around Tucker's height, maybe around 6 foot. Tucker hasn't really come across anyone as tall as him, this was already setting off so many red flags in his mind, but he ignored them. Nver judge anyone from what they look like, his mother always told him. Then again, this guy was talking to himself in a strange way and it was pretty unsettling. Maybe he was high? Or drunk? Tucker didn't know. Maybe his had some sort of medical condition, people must stare at him and give him rude comments all of the time, poor guy. Tucker suddenly felt sorry for the man as his uncle had a medical condition where he would make loud noises from time to time. When Tucker was little this was scary to him. He would hide under his bed whenever his uncle came over and he would cry whenever his uncle tried to talk to him. But as Tucker grew older and more mature, he got to know his uncle better without being afraid of his condition. Tucker was heartbroken when his uncle died of brain cancer ten years ago but he was happy that he got to spend time with him before he died.
Alcarie

9:54am Apr 4 2019

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Posts: 2,092
Merce ::
Nose wrinkling in distaste at the act of spitting, she sent the man a slight glare and stepped back. Even though it was her fault, technically, Merce still didn't allow herself to feel bad about it. Idiot deserved it for stalking a woman, even if he thought she was a dragon. Sniffing primly, she waited while the stranger had his coughing fit. Once he was done and actually began to speak again, telling her he basically knew what she was, Merce jerked as if she'd been struck. A little of it was Merce's surprise, but most of the reaction was due to Amphora's sudden terror. The urge to run was strong enough that Merce almost gave in and let Amphora do as she pleased.

Merce has known from early on in her relationship with the dragon that Amphora was not a large one, but rather gracile and physically weak. How she knew, Merce didn't know exactly. Images in her head when she thought of Amphora, mostly; the same way she knew Amphora was off-white and light blue. And that running had been her main form of defense before she'd been stuck in the stone. It was how the dragon had stayed alive, though before today Merce had never understood from what. And now, face-to-face with one of Amphora's own personal boogeymen, Merce could understand her dragons fight-or-flight. Even if Merce herself didn't feel in much danger any longer.

'It's okay. I don't think he wants to hurt us.' Merce tried to calm Amphora before the dragon freaked out enough to take control again.

'That's what he wants you to think before he takes the knife back and plunges it into our chest! It's how Hunters are, don't you get that? They are trained to manipulate because they are physically weaker, so they can get close enough without us noticing!' Fear laced Amphora's voice, but it said something about the dragons trust in Merce that she wasn't forcing them to flee. Warmth blossomed in Merce, and not for the first time she realized how lucky she was to have Amphora as hers.

'Please, just trust me. The moment anything seems hinky we'll get the heck out of dodge. But he seems like he just wants to talk. And frankly, I'd kinda like to hear what he has to say.' Amphora chuffed, still obviously scared but willing to follow Merce.  Turning her attention back the the man, she sagged a bit and sighed. "Your hunch isn't wrong, though you probably know that. I'm paired with a dragon, Amphora. Have been since Spain 1969." Pausing, she rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly. "I'm presuming you've got other questions, since you don't want to kill me but followed me anyway?" Of course at the mention of the family heirloom, Merce's love of all things old had her perking up and she peered down at the knife curiously. It was took dark in the alley to get a good look at it, unfortunately. But maybe he'd let her analyze it later.

'Yeah, if it's not lodged in your back.'


Tinkers
dmann

11:56am Apr 4 2019 (last edited on 9:20am Apr 8 2019)

Normal User


Posts: 96

Anthony smiles slightly as the Dragon Lady talks to him, her seemingly calmer now. The little piece of information she gave on her past causes him to raise his eyebrows though.


“I'm paired with a dragon, Amphora. Have been since Spain 1969."


At that, he quickly counts in his head, and comes up with the number of 50, for the number of years the Lady was bonded with this Amphora. The information that his Mother told him was true, about it being a bond. And at that, he closes his fist over his heart, and bows his head gently, in a mark of respect towards them both, before lifting his head to look at them again.


“I don’t know how you will feel with this being entirely in reverse, but uh, hello to you both. And yes, I wish I could talk about everything about you, like your situation, in private, and allay your fears completely, but I didn’t bring my interview equipment. A dictaphone, and tablet, before you ask.”


At that, Anthony winced to himself. He realises he would probably be seen as a threat, to Amphora at least. He had read the early history of the Hunters, several times over, to look for a better way. But the amount of bloodshed from those chronicles stopped him from reading to the end.


“I know I can’t change the Hunters as a whole on my own, and I can’t make... Uh, Amphora was it?.. like me, but I am sorry for any attacks incurred upon either of you, and promise that I only wish to talk, Ma’am. Shall we go to the cafe for now then?”




There is, I think, humor here which does not translate well from English into sanity.
Creus

9:56pm Apr 4 2019 (last edited on 10:35pm Apr 4 2019)

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Posts: 92
"Yes, I'm fine. Thank you for asking, I am just having a bit of an argument with my dragon. He prefers fancy expensive things but I think motels are a fine place to stay at. What do you think? There's nothing wrong with motels right?" Reito answered Tuckers question cheerfully as though speaking about dragons was a perfectly normal thing to do. Of course to any normal person Reito would probably come off as insane and his eccentric personality didn't exactly take away from that, he quite easily wore the mask of a madman. Perhaps it was only through pure luck that he hadn't run into a hunter as of yet or perhaps they too just thought he was crazy?
"Oi, don't talk like that in front of strangers! What if a hunter finds you?!"
"A hunter? Wasn't that what those other two dragons where talking about?"
"Yes! They are dangerous and want to kill dragons!"
"I don't understand? Dragons haven't done anything, why would they want to kill us?"
"We don't have to do anything! Does a deer do anything to deserve being hunted? Of course not!"
"But people eat deer? Thats why they hunt them." Reito replied clearly confused by his dragons analogy, at this point if the dragon had hands at the very moment he would probably be face palming.
"Wait, do the hunters eat dragons too? Do we taste good?"
"Ugh."
"No! At least I don't think so? I am pretty sure that would amount to cannibalism?"
"So why do they hunt us then? If they are not eating us and we aren't doing anything wrong? I don't get it?"
"Why don't you find a hunter and ask!"
"Oh, right. I probably should find a hunter and ask them why they hunt us shouldn't I?"
"No! No, you most definitely should not!"
"I'm too young to die!"
The way the two behaved it was as if they where not in a public space full of strangers whom all bore the possibility of being hunters. In the last year they had been extremely lucky.

>>><<<<
In the dark of night a figure cloaked in black walked down the alley between two shops keeping his head ducked away from the camera's view. His target was the shop to his left an old jewelry store that had been around since the nineteen seventies, its security systems where practically just as old as the shop itself. As of recently it was bought out by a local wealthy businessmen and value of the products it carried has since increased though they had yet to update their security. It was a perfect target for a man like him, owned by the wealthy, poor security and high value items, he had been scoping the place out for quite awhile now. A few weeks ago he had made his initial move, entering the store to examine the goods it had available he had asked the shopkeeper a few questions under the pretense of buying something for a girlfriend when he tripped on a rug and accidentally fell into a case, shattering the glass and setting off the stores alarm. The flustered young shopkeeper quickly ran over to check on him and after assuring he was okay he watched her type in the code to silence the alarm. She hadn't thought to stand infront of the alarm to make sure no one saw what she was typing however even if she had it wouldn't have mattered.
The alarm system was old and its keypad beeped every time someone hit a number. To an unpracticed ear each beep was identical but to someone like him, each one had its own unique tone. That was blessing of those old systems, they weren't all the great. Having both seen the numbers and hearing the tone, the man was fairly confident he could get in without a problem. The lock on the door was old an easy one to pick and he knew the alarm code. At least as long as they didn't change the code since then but if that was the case the alarm would go off and he would just leave before the police showed up. He also had one other trick up his sleeve, his partner in crime was posted outside the shop just outside of the cameras view. The white wolf had a specific job, to alert him if anyone passed by and provide a distraction should someone approach the shop though it was unlikely someone would this late at night. Despite being a wolf the beast was pretty friendly and would happily and noisily great anyone who approached, it was his nature that made it easy to train that into him. The hardest part had been teaching the animal to not pass by certain areas, the ones with cameras but he had eventually succeeded in even that. Even if the wolf did not understand a camera he did understand boundaries and that was good enough.
With everything being dark and quiet the man quickly picked the lock, slipped inside and went directly to the alarm located on the wall and typed in the code. He paused for a moment, holding his breath while waiting for it to accept it and when the little box lit up green indicating it had accepted the code he let out a small sigh. Now to get onto business, he also had to pick the locks on the jewelry cases which he already knew had an alarm hooked up to them. He had to move quickly and he did not waste time. Hands clad in fake leather gloves, the kind sold by thousands at walmart he quickly and careful undid a few locks but he didn't snatch everything. No, he wasn't that greedy he just needed to make a living, that was all. So he carefully took a item or two from several cases, carefully spreading out the rest items within to help disguise the fact that something was missing before putting them away as he had taken them out and locking them back up.
With luck the shopkeeper wouldn't even realize things where missing right away and if they did they might not out right suspect thievery. That was his goal, get in get out and leave everything as is without taking enough to make people out right suspicious. This was how he worked, how he had always done it and so far he hadn't been caught. People would eventually notice that things had been stolen but it wasn't nearly as obvious as other thieves. The non professionals who broke in and stole everything. They where the ones who always got caught. Thankfully his memory was sharp, he took in every little detail and returned things to the way they where before he slipped back out the back door, locking it behind himself.
The thief did not stick around longer than he needed to be, ever mindful of the cameras he avoided them and went to collect his companion whom greeted him excitedly before the two set off down the road stolen goods in hand. They where careful to avoid other cameras as they left town, making a beeline to the forest behind it. Once free of the streets the thief let his hood down revealing golden blond hair and deep blue eyes. He had left his car parked a few miles away near one of the trailheads, it would be a bit of a walk but since the vehicle was registered under his real name he didn't want it connected to the crime in any way, shape or form. Furthermore Blitz, the white wolf loved their walk through the forest, it was peaceful and serene as the wolf ran this way and that always eager to explore even if they had come down that path a few hours earlier.
It had been a long day, he had driven into town earlier and took Blitz hiking for several hours to burn off some of the wolfs energy and he still had some work left to do. First, get rid of the items he had stolen he never kept them on his person when he could help it. He preferred to move things quickly so he had arranged to meet someone on another trail, far from his car. The man he had arranged to meet was a well known dealer among thieves, he bought things at fair prices and didn't ask questions though Creus was always careful. He had a set of colored contacts in his pocket and before he got close he slipped them on, wincing slightly in discomfort. He also tucked his hair tightly back beneath his hood and pulled it tight over his face to hide his hair color and ordered Blitz, who was very recognizable to stay out of sight. The wolf would not intervene unless things got really dangerous but thankfully the meeting went smoothly. Like most good dealers keeping their clients identities quiet was how they got good money. At the end, the thief walked away with a little over a thousand dollars in hand. From there he wandered the forest for a good hour to ensure no one was following him before he at last returned to his car, a brand new black crosstrek. The small SUV was quick and reliable without standing out too much and providing plenty of room for Blitz to lay in back. The back seats where almost permanently folded down and on top of them was a nice, large and plush dog bed for the wolf to lay on, considering he traveled a lot he wanted to make sure his loyal companion was comfortable. As soon as he opened up the door the wolf jumped in and plopped down they had been on their feet for nearly twelve hours now and the animal was thoroughly exhausted as was his person whom sat in the front and switched the car on.
The SUV hummed to life and Shot through the Heart played softly through the vehicles cabin. They still had a few hours drive ahead of them to the log cabin the thief had bought three years ago. It had been a bit of an unplanned purchase, the place was in a quiet peaceful location far away from the urban chaos of the towns and cities in that area. He had simply been wastign time, browsing through the internet when he spotted it, such a large place advertised for such a low price it was a bit of a shock. Immediately he arranged with a local realtor to see it, at the time the place had been less than impressive. It had been abandoned nearly twenty years previously and had not sold since, it was dusty and outdated with some decay here or there but it had good bones. The place was large with a lot of rooms and it even had a small apartment attached to the back. The thief honestly wasn't sure why such a gem sat for so long in the market, it needed some work but he saw it as a chance to make money, legal money. If he could fix it up and rent out its rooms for a good price he may no longer rely solely on thievery to survive. The thought was too tempting to ignore so after a bit of research her purchased the place.
 Apparently the only reason why it was left so long was because of a gruesome murder that had happened long ago leading people to believe that it was haunted. He didn't truly believe in those things and he hadn't seen anything unusual in the three years he spent fixing it up. The problem was it still kept people away, he had been trying to rent it out for nearly a year now to no avail at this point he was starting to get a bit desperate, he wanted to keep the place use it as a means to help establish a steady income but soon he would have no choice but to sell. This was his last ditch effort, to advertise it as a great vacation and get away spot. Even if someone just rented the place for the weekend it would still be money coming in to help him pay the bills. "What do you say Blitz? What do you think if I advertise it as a vacation spot? Maybe if I offer home cooked meals or something it will garner some interest?" The wolf didn't understand of course but it was still nice to talk to someone who responded even if it was just with bright, loving golden eyes and a wagging tail.
"Right, worth a try. I hope my cooking is good enough."
 Like everything else, his cooking skills where self taught and considering he only cooked for himself and his pet that ate anything it was hard to say but trying couldn't hurt right? After all he had taught himself how to fix the cabin and he was quite proud of his work. The place still kept its original rustic charm that he hoped would appeal to people looking for that sort of place but he had updated a lot of things as well. It had a large, fully functioning kitchen, nice bathrooms and furniture and even a hot tub. It had a large sun room and even an our door cooking area. The place didn't originally have power but he had hooked up solar panels and a small rooftop windmill making it self sufficient. The trickiest part had been getting things like internet and tv out there but he eventually found a satellite based company that would do the job. It was currently turned off at the moment but he would turn it on if he found renters. So he pulled out his cell phone, updated the listings. "Lets go see if we we can get this place ready and hope things work out." The thief muttered as he put the phone away, backed out of the trailhead parking lot and started the long drive back to the cabin.




Storm
Setzer

5:45pm Apr 5 2019 (last edited on 5:48pm Apr 5 2019)

Moderator


Posts: 2,156

The ride home was filled with comfortable chatter, enjoyable music, and Misty staring out the passenger door window as he stroked her fur. Tired relief filled Vincent as they finally pulled into the visitor parking lot of the condominium complex. After saying goodbye to his friend, agreeing to let her know if the escaped Hunter caused more trouble, he and Misty entered the building.


The lobby was clean and quiet, decorated in a minimalist style with a large aquarium full of colourful saltwater fish in the center. Misty watched the fish with curiosity as Vincent waited for the elevator (he would have taken the stairs if he hadn’t been so tired. The sun dragon made a clicking noise to call the cat to him when the elevator gave a cheerful bing!, indicating that it had returned to the ground floor.


The building was large, so it took a minute or so for the elevator to get to his floor after tapping the right buttons. With another bing!, the elevator opened its doors to let out its passengers. After that, it was a short walk to the door of his home and a few seconds unlocking it before he could finally enter. He let out a sigh of relief, toeing off his shoes and walking to the kitchen to deposit the leftover McDonald's on the counter. Misty gave an insistent meow and brushed her tail against the fridge, earning a fond chuckle from her human. “I know you're hungry, just give me a moment.”


Vincent opened the box and removed the pokemon toy, then placed the leftovers into the refrigerator, pulling out a package of freshpet cat food for Misty. She was meant to be fed at least two hours ago, and while she had been content to share the nuggets earlier, she still needed dinner. Her meow increased in volume when she smelled the opened package, pacing back and forth and twining herself through the blonde-haired man's legs. “Here you go,” he said, placing the bowl on the tiled floor, “sorry it's so late.”


After dishing out some food for his faithful feline, Vincent made for his bedroom. He placed the solgaleo and the painkillers onto his desk and got himself ready for a shower, making his way into the en-suite bathroom. His first order of business was to get the stray leaves and bits of twigs out of his hair so they didn’t clog the drain. Opening the drawer beneath the sink, he grabbed a comb and began to carefully pull it through his tangled hair, catching the debris and dropping it into the garbage beside the sink. Satisfied after a few minutes of repeating the motion, he stepped into the shower.


Water rained down from the showerhead, the heat relaxing tense muscles. Vincent sighed, tipping his head back and running his hands through his hair. After running for his life, getting shot, and sitting in the hospital for hours, it felt good to be home; to be safe.


But for how long, though? One Hunter had escaped the forest, an accomplice that the 11:00 news hadn’t mentioned at all. What of the incapacitated Hunter, who had been jailed? Did they find him full of paralyzing needles, courtesy of a certain rainforest dragon? There were two Hunters, right in the area he just happened to be strolling through, and he had no idea whether or not they had actually been tracking him.


To prevent the worst from happening, he would have no choice but to do as Reito had suggested. Vincent would need to leave, again. He was sick of running, sick of being hunted like some kind of animal. Sick of the fact that an entire cult existed to slaughter people like him for something they had no control over. Being a dragon was not a choice, it was a situation that one found oneself in entirely by accident. It wasn’t anyone’s fault, so why should they be punished? Why should they suffer?


“Ugh”, he grunted, resting his head upon the shower wall as the hot water drummed against his back. Thinking about all of this was beginning to give him a headache. He wasn’t even certain he would be able to sleep, with all of these thoughts running through his mind.


I know it’s not your fault, Vincent reached out to his rather quiet other half, but I just… don’t understand. Why do these people do this to us? How can they not know that we have no control over what happens to us?


“тнєу нανє мαηу мιѕ¢ση¢єρтισηѕ αвσυт тнє ωαу ωє αяє,” Helios replied, seeming a bit tired himself. “ƒαℓѕє ιηƒσямαтιση яσσтє∂ ιη ƒєαя αη∂ ιgησяαη¢є. тнєу ∂σ ησт кησω тнє тяυтн.”


“Why, though?” He asked, aloud this time, distress lacing his tone, “why, after literal centuries, do they still don’t know the people they hunt and kill? What keeps them from questioning their information?”


“ι ∂σ ησт кησω, νιη¢єηт. ι ωιѕн ι ¢συℓ∂ тєℓℓ уσυ.”


The blonde-haired man let out an exasperated breath as he turned the water off and stepped out of the shower, drying himself off and wringing out his hair. “I know they came together in response to unstable dragons that would terrorize villages hundreds of years ago,” he muttered, “but it’s been so long… how can they still think everything is the same?”


“тнєу кιℓℓ єνєяу ∂яαgση тнєу ƒιη∂, ρяєνєηтιηg тнємѕєℓνєѕ ƒяσм ℓєαяηιηg αηутнιηg αвσυт υѕ.” The dragon supplied, just as frustrated. “тнєу αяє ∂σσмє∂ тσ ιgησяαη¢є, ѕσ ℓσηg αѕ тнєу яєƒυѕє тσ ℓєαяη.”


“And those of us who know of them, who have encountered them and know of how dangerous they are, must constantly be wary. They think us creatures of deception, but themselves are far more devious than we inherently are.”


“тнє нуρσ¢яιѕу ωσυℓ∂ вє αмυѕιηg, ιƒ ιт ωαѕ ησт ѕσ ƒяυѕтяαтιηg.”


Vincent let out a bitter laugh in response as he dressed for bed. “Indeed.”


Rather than going straight to sleep, he decided to make his way into the kitchen and brew some chamomile tea. Misty had curled herself up on the couch in the living room, and at her master’s arrival jumped right out of a dead sleep to meet him in the kitchen with a friendly meow. Vincent paused to crouch down and stroke her fur, earning himself a loud, soothing purr. While he waited for the kettle, he picked up the food dish from the floor and washed it in the kitchen sink, resting it on the counter when it was dry.


The blonde-haired man grabbed a mug from the cupboard and placed a tea bag into it, carefully pouring the boiled water. He then took his mug and wandered into the living room, seating himself on the couch and picking his phone up from where he had left it on the coffee table. He booted up Pokemon Go as he waited for his tea to cool, figuring that perhaps he could distract himself for a while with the new game.
Malik

10:41pm Apr 5 2019

Normal User


Posts: 620
Ennie took the long way home, cruising through neighborhoods at a relaxing, slow, crawl with her PokemonGo app running. It was something she usually did after work, something that calmed the nerves, and she wasn't too uptight to admit that she needed that now. Every now and then she was certain she caught sight of strange shadows in alleyways, even thought a creepy black SUV was following her at one point. She chalked it up to nerves, poor food, and lack of sleep, but couldn't shake the very familiar feeling that she was being stalked. 

Cheese and rice, it was like being back in the jungle all over again. 

She decided to head home finally when she realized she wasn't even paying attention to the app any longer. The hour had almost turned quite late and Ennie was once more so relieved that she didn't work tomorrow...er, today. 

'Whatever,' she thought as she pulled into her building's parking lot and guided the Kona into her reserved spot. 'Woulda just called in anyway, I got loads of vacation time.' She scanned the parking lot a few times before exiting her car, not just because she was in a not-very-good neighborhood. Again that feeling, and she wrapped her jacket tighter around herself as she jogged towards the dimly lit lobby. 

Normally, owing a somewhat large, two bedroom, one bath apartment on a Starbucks wage would be unheard of. Ennie's apartment found itself in her price range simply because it was ancient. Built shortly after the reign of the dinosaurs, and currently owned by one of their surviving members, a strict but kind Chinese woman named Ms. Cheng, the apartment building didn't possess such luxuries like an elevator or even a working sprinkler system. Its brick facade was almost intact in a few places, the clothes washing amenities required constant supervision, and the many drafts were painfully evident every winter. But it was home, and Ennie loved it. 

Her apartment was on the sixth story, second from the top. It was L-shaped, like the other three apartments on that floor, and opened directly into a very small foyer, only about five feet long, that led directly into the living room, a 'nicely' furnished room with a brown, microfibre couch against the inner wall and a lively, green and gold hued papasan chair in the corner beside the couch, a perfect reading spot next to the apartment's largest window. A flat-screen TV sat facing the couch, surrounded by all sorts of game-playing gadgets, and an old-wooden record-playing radio sat on a shelf in the corner beside the TV, with stacks of albums beneath it. Almost of this furniture was lost among the plants; dozens, maybe hundreds, of plants. Some were large enough to live on the floor, others sat on the stands with the TV and the record player. There were plants on shelves hung on the wall, plants that hung thickly from the ceiling on colourful macrame hangers, and itty bitty toddler plants that sat on the coffee table, having graduated from the nursery but still too young to get lost in the fray. The plants even migrated into the kitchen, which was separated from the living room by an entertaining bar, which was where Ennie had most of her meals, ignoring the glass-topped dining table pushed against the wall under the window. That was reserved for 'special occasions' ...of which there weren't any... so she ate at the bar. 

A hallway branched off of the kitchen, following the outside wall, with the first door on the left being the second 'bedroom', though Ennie surmised that it was probably a converted broom closet as she couldn't fit a single bed inside it. Ennie used it as her 'nursery', where she grew plants from seedlings or sprouts with the help of cheap but economic grow lights. Currently she was working on a batch of Wish-ordered succulent seeds and was actually seeing some mild success, her first transplant, Sierra, was sitting with the other toddlers on the coffee table-

'Excuse me, Sierra?' Astley scoffed. 'I do believe you mean Shauna.'

'No, I mean Sierra,' Ennie rolled her eyes as she dropped her armful of goodies on the counter. 'I thought we agreed on Sierra.' 

'And I thought we decided that we weren't growing trucks or dancers and that Sierra wasn't exactly the best name. Besides, Shauna's classy.'

'...It's a succulent, Astley.' she thought as she walked over to the kitchen sink and filled a watering can. 'Sierra's just fine.' 

'It's an Echeveria Elegans,' he admonished. 'Elegans! That's like elegant and stuff, you know, classy.' 

"Whatever," she said aloud as she walked the can over to the living room and began watering the many plants. "Sorry, folks, was out late, so you're just gonna have to live with getting watered now. Hi, Phil!" she said in a squeaky baby talk voice as she watered a philodendron and patted its leaves lovingly. This was the first plant she grew since coming to Canada and it definitely had a special place in her heart. "How's my Philly Willy?"

'See? Phil fits this one perfectly, right? You gotta admit I'm good at this name thing.'

'Right. I could see how naming a Philodendron 'Phil' totally taxed your IQ.' Ennie finished with her watering a set the can back in the sink before walking down the hallway towards the bathroom, which sat directly past the nursery. She changed into a pair of shorts and a Jurassic Park T-shirt, brushed her teeth, and headed to her room, at the end of the hall for a well-deserved good night's rest. 

xXxXx

She didn't get it. 

Ennie was roused from a deep slumber partly by a growing feeling of trepidation and partly by a...noise? She sat in bed, staring around at the deep darkness and trying to figure out if it was just her imagination or not. 

It wasn't. She stifled a gasp and sat straight up in bed as something definitely moved in the living room. Something was in her apartment. She stealthily slipped out of bed and made her way to the doorway, stopping midstride as the smell of dragonsteel reached her nose. Crap. 

'Crap doesn't even begin to cover it. Where's your phone, we can call the cops.' 

'It's...in my purse.' she peeked with one eye out of the doorway and down the hall, catching sight of at least two, black clothed men throwing...something on the floor. 

'Okay, where's your purse?'

'On the counter. In the kitchen.' A new smell floated down the hallway, one that had her hair standing on end in pure fear. 

'Are you KIDDING ME? You plug that thing beside you EVERY NIGHT but just not THIS NIGHT? ...Hey what's that smell?' 

'Gasoline,' she thought as she crept quickly down the hall towards the living room one of the hunters stepped backwards into the shelf with the record player, causing the needle to drop. 

"Crap," he muttered as The Beach Boys filled the room. "How do you turn one of these things off?" 

Wouldn't it be nice if we were older
Then we wouldn't have to wait so long?

"I don't know, man, come on. We gotta finish this." There were three of them, she could see as she neared the large room. 

And wouldn't it be nice to live together
In the kind of world where we belong?

"Well it might wake her up! Wait-there!" he had turned to address his cohorts and just barely caught sight of Ennie in the hallway. "There she is!" 

She ducked into the nursery as a few bullets flew past her head before one of the hunters wisely took the gun away, bullets and a room full of gasoline fumes didn't mix well. Ennie took the opportunity to sprint into the kitchen, grappling for any weapon as one of the hunters rushed her. A frying pan. Okay. She raised it just in time to deflect a knife, before bringing the outer edge down hard on her attacker's wrist, disarming him as she swung the flat bottom against his head, the gong-like sound lost among the music.

Wouldn't it be nice if we could wake up
In the morning when the day is new?

The first hunter fell, incapacitated but not out, and she turned just in time to grapple with a second. He was busy trying to slash at her and she blocked the blows as best she could with her pan. She found an opening as he drew the knife over his head, slasher style, and she drove the pan into his diaphragm. A usually ineffective move, but when paired with a sweeping kick to the legs it sent him backwards into her Walmart special end table, breaking it on impact. She grabbed one of the broken legs as he sliced upwards at her, catching the knife in the soft wood before throwing it and the leg away. 

The third hunter, apparently not the biggest fan of the Beach Boys, was struggling to turn off the turntable and settled for throwing the entire shelf on its side. The music stopped, but a half dozen plants were forcefully ejected from their pots as dirt and plant matter littered the gasoline soaked floor. 

And that just about did it for Astley. 

She morphed into her dragon form as his rage flowed through her, maw opened wide as she roared, feathered crest fully extended and wings spread to make herself look as large and intimidating as possible. What would have worked to dissuade foes in her jungle home didn't have the same effect here, and the three hunters fell on her once more. 

She spun as the first hunter, who'd apparently collected his knife, came at her, and threw him bodily against the kitchen counter with her tail. The second one took that opportunity to jump at her but a well placed headbutt sent him soaring towards the door. "Go, go!" Mr. Knocks Down Plants shouted at his cohorts, waving them towards the busted down front door. 

'Yeah, that's what I thought.' Ennie huffed proudly. 'You better run you-'

Her dragon jaw dropped as the last retreating hunter flicked open a Zippo lighter and threw it behind him as he ran through the door. Time seem to slow as she watched the silvery glint of the lighter fall towards the floor. 

'Oh no.'

The fumes caught before the gas itself did, a dense cloud of fire that expanded so rapidly she was thrown clear across the room. She managed to climb back to her scaly feet and was greeted with the sight of the entire front half of her apartment engulfed in flames. The papasan chair and the couch were burning away, filling the room with black smoke, and the many plants were burning in their pots, some falling from the ceiling as their macrame cords were engulfed. Even the philodendron, once so happily sitting by the TV, seemed to wave frantically at her in the hot, turbulent air as its leaves were slowly burned away. 

Ennie made a sad, choking noise deep in her throat as she watched the destruction, tiny raptor arms reaching out towards the only friends she'd had for decades before she cradled her head in her arms. Gone, they were all gone. She thought suddenly of her nursery, maybe she could-

'No. You're gonna have to leave them, Enn. We gotta save ourselves. Purse, phone, keys. Grab them.' Astley reasoned and she nodded, draping her shoulder bag over her head with some difficulty. Another fireball filled the room as another pocket of gas went up, the hallway outside her apartment was becoming filled with the hectic sounds of people gathering their most precious possessions and running for their lives. 'The baby!' Astley shouted as she was about to turn towards a window. 'Save Shauna!' The baby succulent, seated carefully in her tiny Starbucks demitasse cup, was carefully squirreled away in the bag before Ennie broke out a window with her tail, and jumped to safety. 

She landed in a nearby tree and scanned the parking lot for any sign of the hunters. They must have high-tailed it out of there pretty quickly as there were no sign of them. She changed back to a more socially acceptable form and dropped out of the tree, brushing leaves off of her shirt as she ran for the Kona. She managed to start the car, despite the shaking of her hands, and practically flew out of the parking lot. 

The streets were almost empty at this ungodly hour, and Ennie could definitely feel the adrenaline fade away as she calmed down somewhat. The realization that she had lost everything hit her, hard, and tears ran down her face as she drove, trying her hardest not to break down completely. 

'Well...not everything...' Astley reasoned. 'We have the Kona. And we have...'

She slowed to a stop at a red and carefully extricated Shauna from her bag, placing her delicately in the nearest cup-holder. The succulent's leaves were a little black from soot but otherwise it seemed alright. "Okay," she hiccoughed as she pulled away from the intersection. "Now what?" 

'Well we know where Vincent is but we can lead these guys there,' Astley said. 'The Kona's a little recognizable, but we can dump it in that forested area behind the Fairview Heights and head over there on wing, leaving no tracks. That'll give us somewhere to lay low and, well, collect ourselves, without putting Vinny in trouble."

"Good plan," she whispered as she turned onto West Avenue and followed the familiar road uphill. The wooded area where Vincent got shot wasn't that far from his place, which would explain how Misty was there, and she didn't want to risk the hunters hitting even closer to his home. She parked the Kona in the same place she had earlier that night (had it really been all in the same night???) and headed into the woods on foot. She traveled for a while, before she was convinced no one had followed her, and morphed into dragon, taking off in the dark, night air. 

The Fairiew Heights Condos stretched upwards, but she gave them a wide berth so no night owls could accidentally see her. 'How do we know which room is Vincent's?' she thought, scanning the second tower quizzically. 'He never told us a room number-'

'There!' Astley shouted and she caught sight of a blonde haired man sitting in a chair with his phone. She found herself gliding down before she could stop herself, perching on the slim outdoor ledge and pressing her raptor face against the quickly fogging glass.  
DreamWalker

11:08pm Apr 5 2019

Normal User


Posts: 34
Tucker blinked a couple of times in disbelief. "D-dragon?" He stuttered, not being able to comprehend that a dragon was standing right in front of him, talking to him. Tucker then remembered that if the guy realized he was a hunter, he would likely be killed. With a deep breath, he put on a cool face and held the kittens in his coat close. The white kitten, confused, poked its head out to see what was going on. As soon as it saw the man it quickly ducked its head back inside the coat. "S-so, what are you doing in this part of town?" He asked the man, trying to keep a straight face. Tucker nervously pulled his long white hair up into a bun. He then whipped the sweat from the back of his neck. Several scars on his neck were now visible. They were all from one attacker, one who shared his own blood. One who he killed on his father's word. 

Without any weapons, Tucker was defenceless. If this dragon decided to kill him, he would be no match. He needed to keep his cool and act like nothing was wrong. The last thing he wanted was for his father having to come and save him. Then he would probably get something way worse than his regular punishments. He could imagine his speech now 'you stupid ignorant child! How could you let your weopons be stolen and then be too weak to even put up a fight against a dragon!' This is why he liked his mom better.
Alcarie

3:27pm Apr 7 2019

Normal User


Posts: 2,092
Mercé ::
Perhaps it was a bit foolish of her, but the gesture offered by the strange Hunter assuaged a bit of her nervousness. He appeared.. genuine in his respect. Amphora was still all but writhing with unease in Merce's consciousness, but the human knew nothing except time would alleviate the dragons obvious distrust. It was a suspicion and mistrust built by years of bloodshed and tears and no one Hunter, no matter how different then his brethren, would break easily. As the Hunter spoke, Amphora hissed softly at the mention of interview equipment even though he tried to assure them it had nothing to do with torture and interrogation. The dragons soft snarl of "Lies," went unheeded by Merce. 

Instead, she offered a small but honest smile in return. "Well, even in reverse it's better than what I'd expected when I hit you." Cringing slightly, Merce huffed an embarrassed laugh. "So I guess hello to you too." Making sure to keep a safe distance away without being completely obvious that's what she was doing, Merce rounded the Hunter and poked her head from the alley to see if anyone was looking towards them. Nothing. Pleased, she motioned that the coast was clear and stepped back onto the sidewalk. "I honestly don't mind to talk about any of it, though I'll have to make sure Amphora's okay with it before telling you." Shrugging, she wasn't apologetic about that. Amphora was all the had left, had been her constant friend for fifty years and she'd always come first.

Merce figured she was one of the lucky ones, who'd never been extremely close to her parents or siblings. Even back in the 1950's and 60's she'd been filled with wanderlust; had wanted to get out of Spain and explore the world as well as its rich history from a young age. So when she'd accidentally touched the stone and learned what she'd become, the realization she would not age like her family had only haunted for her a short while. She wrote and texted to those who were left still, but meeting and calling were out of the question. Merce's mother and siblings were still in Spain, though her father had passed form heart failure a few years ago. At times Merce missed them something awful, knowing one day she'd be the only one left. But instead of letting those kind of feeling cripple her, she chose the (unhealthy) cooping mechanism of not thinking about it at all.

At the Hunter's assurance that he only wanted to talk, Amphora scoffed loudly. Cringing, Merce rubbed her temple. "Yeah, her name is Amphora. And let me tell you, nothing much you can say will make her trust you. I've not been attacked myself, but apparently she has and it's not a pleasant memory." Stepping away from the alleys mouth so that the Hunter would have plenty of room, Merce waited for him to take the lead. "But the only way I'm going to talk anymore is if there's food involved." Grinning in amusement, she motioned for him to get a move on.


Tinkers
dmann

10:37am Apr 8 2019

Normal User


Posts: 96

Anthony stands quietly as The Dragon Lady says a greeting back to him, walks around him at a safe distance, then quickly looks out of the alley and walking out of it before saying something that gains his full attention.


"I honestly don't mind to talk about any of it, though I'll have to make sure Amphora's okay with it before telling you."


Anthony gives a small noise to agree with the understanding he would need to deal with the trust of Amphora as well, before sighing and following at a slight distance, then noticing the Lady putting a hand to her temple with a pained look on her face, which causes him to give a look of concern towards her, as he listens to her.


"Yeah, her name is Amphora. And let me tell you, nothing much you can say will make her trust you. I've not been attacked myself, but apparently she has and it's not a pleasant memory."


At that, she moves to keep a distance so he can step out and walk ahead, which he does calmly, though after starting to walk, he hears her next words, which have a fun edge to them.


"The only way I'm going to talk anymore is if there's food involved."


At that, he chuckles to himself gently and then walks forwards with mild confidence, then stopping at the cafe, pushing on the door to open it, holding it open, and motioning inwards to the slightly bustling cafe for her. “Ladies first. And may I recommend the sandwiches.”



There is, I think, humor here which does not translate well from English into sanity.
Creus

6:38pm Apr 8 2019

Normal User


Posts: 92
"Yup, dragon! Thats what Rizzio is!" Reito announced cheerfully quite happy that someone other than another dragon didn't immediately write him off as crazy. Honestly, dragons had been myth and legend among humans for who knows how long and they always did say there was some sort of truth behind all those things. So he honestly didn't understand why other humans didn't believe, after all they did have a tendency to believe in other things they couldn't see as well. He really just didn't understand it.
"Eh, what am I doing? I am not sure honestly."
"Rizzio what are we doing in this town anyway?"
"Hell if I know! Your the one who brought us here in the first place!"
"Oh, right we where looking for a place to spend a night or two!"
"I am waiting on my new dragon friends to go on vacation! We're going together!"
"For the last time! Its not a vacation!"
"Oh, Rizzio insist its not a vacation but anyway we are going away together soon!"
"We should go apart! Last thing we need is three dragons in the same spot. We will be easy victims!"
"But there's strength in numbers too!"
"There is also strength in anonymity!"
"Thats a big word Rizzio!"
After his next little debate Reito turned his attention back to Tucker cheerfully. "Can you believe that my new dragon friend got attack? Poor guys was taking his Smiling Maine Raccoon for a walk and some mean people shot him. Thats why we are going on vacation! "
"For the last time its a cat!"
"Ah, Rizzio insist the smiling Maine raccoon is a cat for some reason but they clearly called it a Maine raccoon! Its way to big and fluffy to be a cat!"

>>><<<

The drive back to the cabin was a long and peaceful one, the music, comfortable temperature of the vehicles cabin and the soft sound of Blitz's snoring made the thief a bit drowsy. He did heavily consider the idea of pulling over somewhere and sleeping in the back with his pet. They had a long day after all but with the cabin waiting for him he toughed through it. He had not visited the place in weeks and the lawns was likely overgrown and needed some work plus the place probably had a nice coating of dust that needed to be cleared away. Furthermore he had obtained a surround sound system that he planned to install in the middle level where the living room, dining room and kitchen where located and that would take some work too. He would have to run the wiring behind the walls, install the speakers and install covers over them so they didn't stand out. Then he would be faced with the task of getting the main system hooked in and working. The combined system was pretty much an all in one, it had a turntable, CD, cassette player, radio and it was bluetooth enabled. It was something he hoped would appeal to all generations and potential renters but installing it would certainly be a bit of a task.

Why was he spending so much time and effort on this one place that hadn't seen any interest by renters since he bought it three years ago was beyond him. He wasn't even living in the main cabin and he spent very little time in the apartment out back. Most of his time was spent on the road, planning out his next theft in order to keep the place. So why? Was it really because he hoped it would secure him a decent future if he got it rented or was there more to it? Such as finally having a place to return to after all these years? For someone being homeless and without a family since he was young it seemed like a nice idea but he never actually stayed there for long. He was perfectly happy out on the road traveling as he had always done.
After he had escaped from that place and that person he had to survive on the streets on his own. It hadn't been easy at first but he had managed up until that fateful day. He had nearly been caught stealing some shoes and fled into the forest. Thinking about those days caused a flood of emotion, he had been lonely and scared but at the same time he had this strange sense of freedom. While all the other children relied on their families, the government and the education system he was free to do what he wanted.

As he finally pulled into the cabins gravel driveway the memories and thoughts of that day continued. He had been running away from a police officers, a new pair of sneakers clutched tightly in his hands, his old pair soggy and falling apart in the morning dew. Eventually after loosing the guy in the city he had fled into the forest and kept running after that brief and scary encounter. Unfortunately before long he found himself plunging down a cliff, due to the thick and heavy foliage of northern New York he hadn't even seen it coming. One minute he was running, the next plummeting. After that everything had gotten fuzzy for a bit, he remembered intense pain and fading in an out of consciousness for awhile. By the time he finally came too he had come to the terrifying realization that he was trapped. His body was broken, he had several broken bones and the cliff was far too steep and muddy for is injured young body to climb.

For days he had lay there surviving off the muddy water puddles near by, cold, alone and in pain it didn't take long for him to give up. No one new he was there, no one was looking for him and no one would miss him. It was a hard reality for a nine year old child especially once he started lapsing in and out of consciousness again. That was until a miracle happened, he remembered waking up as a large shadow flew over head, his vision a bit fuzzy and his mind clouded he didn't think much of it until he came face to face with a large reptilian head. Even at the tender young age of nine, he didn't believe what he was seeing, not at first anyway. He thought he was hallucinating. Then as everything started to fade away again he remembered the sensation of flying through the air. When he came to again he was being carried by someone clearly human, it was very confusing. In the state he was in, he couldn't remember much about the person whom rescued him. Just their hair, shimmering strangely in the dark.

Later on he had woken up in the hospital to learn that a stranger found him at the bottom of the cliff, rescued him, brought him to the hospital and paid for his entire medical bill. He never learned who that person was but those three images, the shadow, the reptilian head and the shimmering hair remained permanently lodged in his mind. For the next year of his life he had been swept into child services program and dropped into a foster home with people he'd rather forget. It had been a terrible experience just as bad as the person his parents had given him too, his only relief had been escaping to school. He had enjoyed learning but he couldn't stay with those people. After a year he had fled, escaping into the life he knew now, stealing to survive and constantly traveling, avoiding the law and those service workers. When he was young things like schooling had become difficult, it was hard to attend school without people getting suspicious even though he had become good at forging documents he could never stay long.

In the end he bounced from school system to school system under various identities and learning what he could while surviving on his own. It had been challenging to say the least, each school was vastly different than the next, different curriculum, different teachers and teaching methods but in those lonely days he enjoyed the challenge of trying to put the missing pieces together. It gave him something other to focus on than his life circumstances though in the end he never could get any sort of diploma. It was impossible considering he never stayed in one place for long and never used his real name. For that reason he never really tried for any sort of career which was why when this cabin popped up the opportunity it provided proved to be irresistible.
As soon as he opened the driver door of the crosstrek Blitz practically trampled him to get out, exited to be back. The wolf took off, revived from his long nap in the car and ran around exploring the overgrown yard. "Well, looks like we have some work to do." The thief muttered tiredly as he headed toward the apartment in back, first he needed some sleep.


Storm
Setzer

8:27pm Apr 8 2019

Moderator


Posts: 2,156

The app played cheerful music the second it was opened, an adventurous tune that was probably designed to get people excited to play. Vincent was just happy for a distraction from his dark thoughts. He paused at the sign-up screen, not knowing what to call himself. He probably couldn’t use his own name; it was likely taken by one of the multiple millions of other players by now. Pressing a hand to his chin, he hummed thoughtfully. It shouldn’t really matter, but he considered it nonetheless.


“Help,” Vincent said aloud, “what should my name be?”


“уσυя ηαмє ιѕ νιη¢єηт?” Helios replied, confused.


“No, I mean what should my username be?” the blonde-haired man specified, “I can’t use my real name, it’s taken by someone else.”


“σн,” the dragon understood, “ωєℓℓ, уσυ ℓιкє∂ тнαт... ѕσℓgαℓєσ, яιgнт? ρєянαρѕ тяу ѕσмєтнιηg тσ ∂σ ωιтн тнαт?”


“Good idea,” he returned to his phone, typing in various names including ‘solgaleo’ with little success. I suppose it’s a popular one.


A thud at his window drew the attention of both Vincent and the large cat nestled up beside him on the couch. He feared that perhaps a bird had flown into it and needed help, so he got up to check. The sight of a familiar raptor-like dragon had him doing a double take. “Ennie?”


Vincent jogged to the sliding glass door that separated the balcony from the indoor portion of his condo, unlocking and pulling it open in one swift motion. He wasn’t sure exactly why the rainforest dragon had arrived so unexpectedly, but he could feel distress emanating from the small dragon. Something was very wrong. “Come inside, quick,” he urged, ushering his friend into his home.


Ennie looked… well, like something awful had happened to her. She smelled heavily of smoke, a dusting of soot over her clothes and hair, as though she’d just narrowly escaped a roaring fire. “What happened?” Vincent asked, face twisting with concern.
Malik

12:51am Apr 9 2019

Normal User


Posts: 620
"They killed them!" Ennie and Astley both loudly exclaimed, aloud and to Helios respectively. "The hunters! They-they followed me home! I woke up and-and they were in my house! And then-then they killed them!"

"Calm down," Vincent soothed as Ennie's shoulders started to shake. He guided her over to an overstuffed armchair and sat her down. "I'll go put some tea on, while that's brewing, please, calm down so you can tell me what happened?" she sniffled and wiped a wrist over her nose, causing the light dragon to scrabble for a box of tissues. "I'll be back."

He darted into the kitchen and set a kettle on the stove as he rifled through his tea drawer. "I swear I had some chamomile last week... Ah! Here it is!" He set a tea bag in a large, green mug and added the boiling water and a couple spoons of honey before returning to Ennie. She must have turned the TV on to find something to take her mind off...whatever it was, he thought, hearing the familiar voices of the local news cast. He stopped in his tracks at the entrance to the cozy sitting room as he caught sight of the TV and finally listened to the anchorwoman. 

"...on the scene of an apartment fire in the 400th block. Firefighters are working to put out the blaze that has gutted the apartment complex. The cause of the fire is still under investigation but given the age of the building and the lack of an emergency sprinkler system, investigators do not believe it was intentionally caused." 

"Yeah, right," Ennie sniffed again before gratefully accepting the tea from Vincent. "That was my apartment, Vince!" she cried as the other dragon sat down in a facing chair. "The hunters were at my apartment! They did this! They burned it down, burned them all down!" Tears were flowing down her face as she talked, and Vincent helpfully nudged the box of tissues over. "They're all gone," Ennie choked as she dabbed at her eyes. "Even-even Phil, oh god! Phil!" This brought along an entirely new wave of sobbing, coaxing Misty off of the couch and towards her, making a small 'muuurr' noise as she did so, before jumping gracefully into Ennie's lap. The young girl sobbed again as she grabbed the cat and buried her face in the long fur, shoulders shaking as Misty purred loudly and soothingly. 

'...Thanks, Smilodon... We needed that.'

"The hunters were at your home?" Vincent asked after Ennie had some time to calm down. "My God, Ennie, I'm-I'm so sorry." 

"You were right," she hiccoughed. Her face wasn't buried in Misty's fur anymore, but she wasn't letting the cat go, which was fine with Misty who had snuggled deeply into Ennie's embrace and began kneading her paws on the woman's shoulder. "You said we should go and hide and lay low and you were right. I should have. Maybe then I-... I would still have..."

"Don't talk like that," he admonished gently. "You're here. They didn't get you. That's the main thing. You're still here." 

"They didn't get the Kona, either," she nodded, a shadow of a smile on her lips. "I uh I ditched it in the woods back there. Wanted to make sure I didn't accidentally lead them here." 

'That's not all they didn't get. Remember?' 

"Oh!" she didn't remember grabbing the tiny thing when she left the Kona but Astley obviously did. She set Misty down on the floor as she retrieved something from her purse before presenting it to Vincent. A tiny, perfectly formed succulent seedling in a chipped Starbucks demitasse cup. "I guess it's not all lost." Ennie said, setting the cup down on the coffee table where Misty sniffed it curiously. "Still have Shauna."

"That's the spirit," Vincent wore a small smile as he squeezed her shoulder comfortingly. "I hope you know that you're more than welcome to stay here, in fact I insist. There's a guest room, first door on the left, it should already be made up. There's a bathroom just across the hall, too, if you wanted to get cleaned up." 

"Thanks," she murmured, obviously fighting exhaustion. "I-I really appreciate this, Vincent. I... The last thing I wanted to do was drag you into this."
DreamWalker

2:13pm Apr 10 2019

Normal User


Posts: 34
Tucker's heart started beating faster and faster. His eyes darted from place to place, trying to find and escape from this conversation. Then he heard the stranger mention that he needed a place to stay. Tucker couldn't help his kind-person instincts start to kick in. He took a deep breath and put on his best customer service smile. "A place to spend a night or two? There is a wonderful motel a few blocks away, its not that far of a walk and one can get there in ten to twenty minutes." The motel Tucker was talking about was very nice. It usually takes in homeless people with no money to spend the night. Tucker then remembered the first time he has ever been to a motel. It was for a fancy dinner party his father was invited to. He remembered on the very first night, Tucker had already made friends with all the animals who were staying with their owners in the rooms near his own. His father was so angry when he found out why his son was snooping around. But that was eighteen years ago, times were different now. Tucker now knows if he ever befriends animals around his father the animal would usually end up dead.
Alcarie

3:53pm Apr 10 2019

Normal User


Posts: 2,092
Following along behind the Hunter, Merce stuck one hand into her jackets pocket so that her fingers bumped the knife behind the fabric. The action was more to comfort Amphora than anything, as Merce personally didn't think the guy meant them any harm. "Famous last words."  Amphora snarked. "Don't get complacent!" Amused, Merce's lips twitched upwards as she scanned the dwindling crowds along the streets. It was later, apparently, than she'd thought.

"How much further?" She called out, then clacked her jaw shut as the Hunter stopped in front of a small but quaint cafe. "Well, that answers that question." Unable to help herself, she snickered as he held the door open for her and motioned for her to enter first. "Dragon hunter by night, chivalrous gentleman by day. Who'd have thought?" She kept her tone light and teasing so he didn't take her words as mocking as she walked past and into the shop. Amphora hissed a warning not to put her back to him, which Merce ignored. 'If he was going to kill me, I doubt he's stupid enough to do it in front of so many witnesses. Calm down!'

Inside was warm and smelled strongly of coffee and baked goods, which quickly reminded her she was starving. Stomach giving a loud rumble, Merce approached the counter to better see the menu and began scanning what was offered. Even Amphora was momentarily pulled from her sulk as she began offering suggestions. Most of which were turned down. "Mmm tuna sandwich. No, whitefish fillet on a toasted sesame bun. Oh! Lobster roll!" Blanching, Merce internally whimpered.

'We just came from Halifax! How are you still wanting seafood.' Shuddering, she quickly decided one something else completely and tried waving down one of the cashiers.


Tinkers
dmann

5:58pm Apr 10 2019 (last edited on 6:59am Apr 11 2019)

Normal User


Posts: 96

As Anthony follows the Dragon Lady into the cafe a few steps behind her, he quickly scans the cashiers, taking his eyes off her, to see who was working the late shift. And that is when he saw her. And she was near ‘Amphora’, about to speak to her.


“Good evening, and welcome to Luanne’s. My name is Catherine, how may I help you?”


Very quickly Anthony shrinks into a seat at a table while the Dragon Lady makes her order, when suddenly the Dragon Lady gestures towards him, saying something about him paying for her selection, to which Catherine looks at him, nods, and laughs for a moment.


“Has Ant got another weird friend in town? Any friend of his is a friend of mine.”


At that, Anthony headdesks the table. He was trying not to reveal his name to the Dragon Lady. Not that he could tell Catherine that. After he raises his head, he nods to his currently off girlfriend, to show that she is speaking the truth, and he adds, in almost a grumble “and a bottle of water for me as well, Kit Kat. Put it on my tab.”


There is, I think, humor here which does not translate well from English into sanity.
Creus

6:53pm Apr 10 2019

Normal User


Posts: 92
"Oh? Awesome, Rizzio and I are beat and a bit sore too. We flew all the way over here, he let me try flying but then  we crashed into a tree! I was watching a fight below in the forest and he distracted me!"
"I was warning you, you idiot! You where not watching where you where going!"
"Where is the hotel again? Can you show me? Also what town is this?"
"Don't go with strangers! We will find our own way!"
"Quit nagging mom!"
"How dare you- I am a dragon! Don't you dare make such a-"
"I am not very good with directions, thats how I ended up here. So uh, could you show us? Last time I was trying to find a place to stay I got lost and ended up wandering around all night!"
"You had a beer and got drunk you lightweight!"
"Eh, so thats what happened?"
"Anyway, I'm Reito and my grumpy friends is Rizzio and he really needs is beauty rest, who are you?"
"YOU!" The deep guttural growl from a now extremely pissed off dragon echoed through the assassins head however it merely rolled through failing entirely to scare its target whom had grown so used to such sounds that he barely even recognized it. At this point the dragons angry growling was treated as more of a background noise.
>>>><<<<

Blitz was no where to be seen by the time Creus made it to his little apartment however the thief  had little to worry about. This behavior was quite typical of the wolf and he knew he would return and crawl in bed sometime during the night. He had learned the hard way in the past that a closed door would keep the wolf at bay, Blitz was a clever animal and by the time he reached five months old he had all but mastered opening closed doors. Creus completely ignored the rough surface of the partially chewed up door knob, unlocked the door and walked inside closing it behind him. By morning the door knob would probably be in even worse shape but he was to tired to care, they where cheap and easy enough to replace, which tomorrow was exactly what he was going to have to do. Thankfully he had spares for this very reason.
Unlike the cabin, the inside of his apartment was cold, dreary and unfinished. Its condition had been far worse than the cabins forcing him to gut the entire place and start fresh and since it was not his top priority he put all his time, effort and money into the main cabin. The floor was simply plywood, prepped, cleaned and it had been awaiting the installation of a proper floor for the last three years. The walls where bare of even drywall(sheetrock) and only had a few patches of isolation here and there around windows and the entire place was lit by a single light bulb that he had strung up to the bare ceiling beams.
It was not a pretty place but for a thief who once slept on the streets it was more than good enough. He had a roof and walls to offer some basic protection from the elements,eventually he would do more work if he could get the main cabin rented out. Even his furnishings where at a bare minimum, just old bed, a small, warn out table with two mismatched chairs and a barely functioning kitchen and bathroom. Everything else he owned was scattered around in a few bags consisting spare clothes ad other essentials.
He did not own much and even though most would wonder why he didn't just stay in the main cabin and take advantage of all that it had to offer while he waited for a renter the thief didn't want to let himself get used to such luxuries. He didn't deserve it for one, after all he made a living off of taking from others and two he had tried it once and found it rather uncomfortable. It was much nicer than anything he was used to.
Stripping off his jacket, the thief headed to bed still fully dressed a habit he picked up from a long life on the streets, it was always best to be prepared to run at any moment, even if he was relatively safe here.Some hours later he woke briefly to the familiar sound of someone chewing on the door, moments later he felt Blitz climb into bed next to him and plop down practically on top of him, the wolfs heavy head landing almost painfully on his chest. The wolf let out a content sigh and soon the two of them drifted off into sleep.


Storm
Setzer

12:47pm Apr 11 2019

Moderator


Posts: 2,156

As Ennie told him about what had happened-- about how the Hunters had broken into her home, an icy chill prickled at Vincent's spine. They had followed her. They had burned down her home. She could have died.


He kept his composure as best he could for her, willing the panicked thought to leave his mind so that he could concentrate on helping her calm down.


“тнєу єѕ¢αρє∂, тнσυgн,” Helios supplied, helping to ease his frazzled nerves, “тнєу αяє αℓινє, αη∂ тнєу αяє ѕαƒє ωιтн υѕ.”


Yes, you're right, the blonde-haired man silently replied. Thank you, my friend.


Vincent cracked a small smile as he watched Misty make her way over to the distressed rainforest dragon, jumping into her lap with a ‘murrr’. She really was amazing at her job, he mused as she let out a loud, soothing purr.


He did his best not to think about how the Hunters might not have been there, if she hadn't rescued him in the forest, or how if he had warned her sooner, perhaps she would have known to be wary. With Ennie herself thinking about how things could have been different, Vincent snapped himself out of those thoughts. She needed him to be calm and collected, while she was a whirling storm of emotions.


The sun dragon repeated the words that Helios had spoken to him, both for his own reassurance and for that of his friend. They'd both had their own close calls with Hunters tonight, but they had survived. Vincent only wished that it hadn't taken such a traumatizing experience for Ennie to realize what a threat these people posed to their kind. Bitter resentment at their cult as a whole shadowed his soul, stirring within both himself and the dragon. These people truly had no boundaries; no empathy. They could have killed the humans they claimed to protect in that massive fire, but they paid no mind to that fact. All that mattered was killing his friend.


“Thank you for the consideration,” the blonde-haired man replied softly as she explained that she had left her car somewhere else. Misty let out a trilling sound as she was placed on the floor so that Ennie could rifle through her bag, presenting a little succulent plant in a chipped Starbucks cup. Vincent was glad she had been able to save one of them; he knew how much she loved her plants.


“You are more than welcome,” Vincent replied with a smile. He was, in this moment, very grateful that he lived on his own; his condo was spacious, with two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a nice, roomy kitchen with an island and a couple of stools, a broom closet, plenty of storage space, and a large living room openly connected to the kitchen, with the balcony attached via sliding glass doors. There was more than enough space for Ennie to stay here comfortably.


“You don’t need to worry about that,” he said sincerely, “really. I was dragged into this nonsense the second I bonded with Helios.”


A mock indigent noise from the dragon had him chuckling. “Not that it's his fault, of course.”
Malik

5:56pm Apr 11 2019

Normal User


Posts: 620
That earned a small chuckle from Ennie as she sipped at her tea, but as suddenly as a flip of a switch she felt exhaustion overwhelm her and deflated like an abused carnival balloon. She wiped the tired tears from her eyes and stifled a yawn. "Um... I have had one Hell of a day, we both have, honestly, but I'm seriously starting to feel it. Might just turn in now, if that's cool." She smiled back at Vincent and mumbled a thanks as he nodded and scooped up her purse and sole surviving succulent and stood to make her way down the hall. "What were you doing?" she asked, turning around one last time and gesturing towards his phone, still abandoned on the sign in screen. 

"Oh. That? I was just trying, and failing, to choose a username." Vincent shrugged and picked up the phone. "Can't quite find the right one, though I did like that 'Solgaleo' toy I got in the Happy Meal." 

Ennie thought for a moment, tired eyes frowning in concentration. "Soldraleo?" she suggested nonchalantly before finally disappearing into her room, leaving Vincent staring quizzically at his phone. 

The bed was indeed already done up, though Vincent didn't really seem the type to entertain many guests. Ennie figured it was just his aesthetic that compelled him to keep a clean and tidy guest room. Everything neat and tidy. Just so. That was fine with her, she thought as she crawled under the light but cozy quilt and finally let sleep overcome her. 

xXxXx

The morning bought a wave of varying emotions. Contentment as she awoke in a comfortable bed, confusion as she realized it wasn't her bed closely followed by fear, then realization and overwhelming sadness when the events of the following night finally flooded back to her. She turned on her side, staring fixedly at Shauna on the nightstand in front of her and trying her hardest to not dissolve into sobs. 

'Hey, chin up! You're okay, you're okay! We're all okay! That's what matters. Do you really want the Smilodon to come back?' 

'...No,' she thought as she sniffled. 'But I didn't hear you complaining last night when Misty showed up. In fact, I think you appreciated it.'

'Who? Me?! No, come on! I don't-I wouldn't-... I just knew you needed the uh the calming stuff. You know the rumbling. The Good Vibration.'

'...The good vibration?' 

'Yeah! When the Smilodon makes that rumbling noise and goes like-' he made an attempt to imitate a cat's purr but instead sounded like a toddler blowing raspberries. 'The Good Vibration! They made a song about it!'

'I...really don't think that's what the song's about,' Ennie sighed as she sat up, staring blearily around the room until she caught sight of a round wall clock. She'd slept until nearly noon and still felt exhausted. Maybe losing almost everything you owned had that sort of effect. 

'Hey! No more dwelling. Let's get thinking about today, what's our plan?' 

'Well... I think I have some old camping stuff in the back of the Kona, a jacket and some shoes at least. Gotta go pick up some things, clothes, the like.' she reached over and plucked her purse off of the end table and retrieved her wallet. 'I'd like to get the Kona repainted, green just isn't a smart choice for laying low, I was thinking black instead. Doing that would meant breaking this bad boy back out.' She pulled a VISA card and scrutinized it. 'But I think we can handle it this time around.' 

'Really? Are you sure about that? Do you remember what happened last time? I remember what happened last time.'

'Don't worry! I'm not going to spend six grand on LEGOs.' 

'Can you promise that?' 

'...Okay so I might spend some of it on LEGOs but not all of it. I also have to get a hold of work, see if there's any benefits or kickbacks to getting your house burnt up, and let them know I'll probably be taking a while off, good thing we stocked up those vacation hours.' Ennie nodded, suddenly looking far more confident and determined as she hopped off the bed and headed for the door. 'So that's our plan, get clothes from the Kona, get Kona repainted, shopping, phone work.' 

'I like it,' Astley sounded impressed. 'Oh! Do you think Vince has Golden Grahams?'
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