darkSpyro

"That decision is for us to make, not something like you," Latnok said to Shade. "Of course things end up badly when you tap into such power with reckless abandon like you have. In a controlled environment, however..." Latnok paused for a moment. "Like I said, it wouldn't be my place, but rather, someone with more experience in that sort of magic. It's far too dangerous for me to use, at least until someone finds a safe way to harness it.

"Now, as for you. I am satisfied after learning what I have, and it all seems legitimate. Now make sure you don't run into any more Shadowstone, and don't give anyone a reason to want you killed, and you will be free to go," Latnok said, as he walked over to some scales which came off of Shade in the battle. "I'll just be taking a few of these."

Having enough of Latnok's greed, Angora prevented him from approaching Shade any further.
"That's as far as you'll go! You think I don't know humans find dangerous uses for things like that?" Angora said, using her sword to block his way and knowing that if Latnok was part wizard, or at least knew some magic, he could create dangerous concoctions with something like a dragon scale. Shade wasn't a dragon, but was pretty close.
"So typical of you humans to take anything and everything! That bogus image you showed me earlier? Hah, big deal! I've seen human destroy human villages! You can't even respect your own kind! You just take what you want, whether it belongs to a fellow human or not!" Angora declared furiously, disliking Latnok very much. Even though her hatred was more towards dragons, she made it no secret that humans disgusted her as well.

After a very brief pause, Latnok focused on one of his arrows on the floor. After glowing briefly, it moved to impale the scale he was grabbing, then began moving towards him.

"You're in my way," Latnok said nonchalantly.

Angora then boldly dared to take the arrow with her own two hands, trusting that whatever damaging magic it contained, her magical armor would withstand it.
"No way! You think I'm going to let a maniac like you take an object like this to do heaven's know what!" Angora insisted, still unwilling to let Latnok leave with a sick prize. Despite caring mostly about herself, she cared enough about the world and any potential dangers. Shade was corrupted when many of these scales fell, so she believed they were too dangerous in their current state to let someone like Latnok take them. He's already made it clear that he's a bounty hunter despite any moral he claimed he had, and bounty hunters were usually greedy and ambitious, constantly trying to expand their riches no matter what.

Just as he predicted, the magic cancellation arrow exploded violently, in a flash of bright light, unleashing a blast of the spell's effect directly at the armor. Latnok was not waiting around to see the hleffect, however - he was preoccupied grabbing another scale that fell on the other side of the battlefield during the struggle. Putting it in a mysterious bag that his whole arm fit down, despite its size, he grabbed some arrows as his arm came out and nocked an arrow.

"Stupid troll - fancy armor or no, you don't possess vision. Power without knowledge is worthless. Look at me - I, someone who's trained to kill monsters since before I was a teenager, am able to put our differences aside when I have no issues with anyone here, and yet you want to hold on to grudges, unlike your friends. I don't know what kind of legendary warrior you want to be, but if you're fighting the same kind of thing you fought just now, I might even be fighting the same things sometime. Now, if you want fight, then you're welcome to try - you won't so much as touch me, though. Otherwise, you can stop wasting our time and move on."

OOC: Fun fact - Latnok means "visionary" in another language. Bonus points to whoever gets it.

"Well," Latnok said, "I already have a scale, all safe in this magical bag. Like I said, it's not my area of expertise, but one of the Guardians might know whether it can safely be handled. Imagine the possibilities - learning to handle it safely, much like how we gained the ability to undergo our ritual safely." His bow stayed fixed on Angora the whole time. "I'm not some moustache-twirling villain looking to kill everyone - I just don't think people should fear things while making no effort to understand them. If it can't be handled safely, then we will destroy it."

Darkheart growled at Latnok. "Stop pushing your luck, Human."
At the mention of dark matter, Star commented "Finally! Something I understand! Dark matter, at the very least, is connected to my scientific studies on time travel! It's a sort of inversion of normal matter, possibly related to antimatter! It's actually quite valuable in time travel, though - as you said - it is extremely dangerous if not handled properly."

Angora looked on how everyone seemed to agree with her, and gave a small smile. Plus, her armor was more magical than she thought, and nowwasthinking of keeping it for real. Her tiny happiness lasted very little after seeing how Latnok still wanted to take the corrupted scale with him.
"Are you deaf human? You can't take that scale! Some knowledge is better being left in the dark! Do you have any idea how much death and misery many have caused in the name of knowledge?" Angora said with some maturity, knowing that many inventions, human or not, were originally created for a greater good, until somebody finds darker uses for them and causes nothing but destruction. Although she hated dragons, she was starting to believe humans were more worthy of hatred.

Latnok withdrew the scale from the bag which began sewing itself up, as well as a white orb which reflected light like snow. Several other objects, including arrows and a map, fell out from the damaged bag. "Well, then. That's quite something. Very well, then, I'm done with you all." As he crushed the orb in his hand, a brilliant, blinding flash of light came out, and Latnok seemingly evaporated.

By that time, Angora was red with anger, not just with Latnok, but with Orion as well.
"Why didn't you stopped him? Some great deity you are! Did you see what that scale did? Ugh, seriously, I was misled this all time! I should've hated human more! I mean seriously, whose idea it was to allow a human into this group?" Angora said, now also upset at herself for not stopping him from getting into Shade's lair. He must've slipped past her when she fell asleep earlier. Shade's threat was over for now, but they may have gotten themselves into something much worse...

Latnok eventually reappeared at a cave entrance, quite a distance away from the fight. He retched and stumbled for a bit, but regained his composure after a while.

Ugh, I hate using that thing...

So he was at the entrance to the winding cave network that would lead to the hideout of the Ardent Guardians. He pulled out his map to go over the directiond of the natural labyrinth...

...or rather, he would have, if it wasn't one of the items that fell out of his bag as the scale burned a hole through it. Fine, I'm familiar enough with the way anyway... He took a step into one of the many entrances.

Star and Darkheart flinched at the bright light. Darkheart actually yelped. "I'm blind!"
Star, meanwhile, rubbed his left eye. "Thank Arceus I didn't have my right eye open... It's very light-sensitive..." Slowly making his way towards the minor mess Latnok left behind, he wondered aloud "What's all this? Hey, he left a map!" A wicked grin spread across his face. "I think I know what to do with this!" He said in an almost sing-song voice, waving the map in the air. "While we're tracking him down, I'm sure we can find something to do to him... A suitable punishment..." Looking at Angora, he added "Humans always WERE a nuisance. A group of them killed a traveling companion of mine over a misunderstanding. They didn't live long afterwards, though. Can't really remember why, everything that happened then was a reddish blur."

There were two sides to the map Star picked up. On one side was an illustration of a substantial area of the world, with a mountain range in the center. On the mountain range was a big label, ARDENT GUARDIANS. On other portions of the map were various highlighted areas of different colors - according to the legend, white highlights represented areas in which humans and another sapient species were living peacefully, with a note that those of that species in that area should be treated the same as humans in regards to protecting them. Areas highlighted brown indicated current hotbeds of human vs human conflict on a large scale, as between kingdoms, with a note that these areas were to be avoided if possible. Areas highlighted brown indicated conflict zones between humans and lesser monsters, such as trolls and giant bugs, with a note to be wary while in these areas. Areas highlighted red indicated conflict zones between humans and greater monsters, such as dragons and basilisks, with a note that intervention in these areas would most likely be necessary and that one should avoid these areas unless completely prepared with the right protective equipment and training.

On the other side of the map were several broken images of a cave system in the mountains, with arrows pointing to the entrances and exits that needed to be taken to reach the hideout of the Ardent Guardians. Certain sections were marked with a fire symbol - according to the legend, extreme heat protection or heat resistance would be needed in those areas due to convection as a result of lava.

Latnok - holding the scale in one hand and creating a light to see his way through the dark caves with the other, and still exhausted after his use of the escape orb - continued to wander through the caves. Though he hit the occasional dead end, he was slowly but surely making progress towards the headquarters. A thought came to him, however - with the map left behind, the others would be able to follow him, provided they could get their bearing on the map and had half an idea of what to do. He estimated that he was maybe a day away from them, which would hopefully give him time to rendezvous with the Ardent Guardians and regain his strength - if they could teleport, however, that time would be shorter, and if they had a skilled mage casting the spell, rather than relying on an object which had the horrible side effect of leaving the user feeling weak, then he would be in a really bad spot.

The heat was, however, beginning to pick up. Soon, light was, as well. Latnok knew what he needed to do at this point - some form of extreme heat resistance or protection would be needed in the next area in order to avoid burning alive. With some effort, he cast and began to maintain a cooling spell, made easier by his heat-resistant armor. As he went through one of the cave exits, a cavern full of lava became visible, and several more paths opened up. Almost there...


OOC: I think you're all going to love what I have planned for the next few posts. Will integrate Latnok and the Ardent Guardians into the story a lot better.

Quote: cyndego

Quote: redwes

Raclaw continued to watch, still keeping an eye on Dex and stopping the bleeding for as long as he could. He waited for the next response before doing anything...

Dex was not sure what to say he was a thief and a assasin if he had faild before that would have mean dead " why are you trying To help me?" Dex said with low voice. The wound started to heal slowly, it looked like it was burning. " Get Back or it Will hurt, my blood burns my wounds pretty fast. It Will be able to stand soon so you should make your move now so what it is going to be? You have been fair so i will do the same I was not mindcontrolled or forced to do anything i acted how i wanted to. Knowing that it should make yourthoughts more clear" Dex said To raclaw.

'I won't let you die by my hands, although I cannot speak for the others. If you wish to redeem yourself, you may join us if the others allow it. If, however, that they deem otherwise-- than you are on your own. Good luck and don't attempt this again.,' Raclaw spoke directly into Dex's mind again as he held on just long enough for the wound to almost heal. Burns aside, he then shifted his focus to the others and everything else that had occurred, turning his back away from the would-be-assassin.

"I don't know what he plans to do with that scale, but it can't be good. We must stop him, regardless of what it takes.," he then said turning towards the others and having conflicted feelings about the whole thing. From his experience, humans were generally good. However, he also knew that his own collar was possibly originally created or used on another by a human. And he couldn't help but see the good in humans as he was even raised by them. 'This Latnok though-- he can't really think we're that bad can he? And yet HE wants to use the dark power for his own good.,' he thought frustrated at himself for not seeing it sooner and not doing enough to stop it...

As the scale radiated, Latnok began feeling a horrible dread rack his mind. It would seem that even several degrees of separation weren't enough to negate the negative effects, though they were somewhat mitigated.

I must hurry...

As he finally reached the last cave entrance, he was greeted with a familiar sight - two Guardians, each wielding a spear in their dominant hand, and wearing similar armor to him. As he approached, they greeted him with spears raised overhead, parallel to the ground, in salute.

"Is it... Strider Latnok, welcome back! Are you returning to us?", asked one of the Guardians. A Hunter. The Ardent Guardians had six ranks, with seniority also playing a role within each rank - Initiate, Apprentice, Hunter, Executioner, Arbiter, and Godfather. Initiates were those who had just joined, and were learning the very basics while often performing menial tasks. Apprentices were under direct tutelage by someone ranked at least a Hunter, having shown skill in combat they have been trained in, while being prepared to undergo the Draconic Ascension ritual. Hunters were those who had completed the Draconic Ascension ritual and thus much more powerful, and trained in their newfound powers. Executioners - of which Latnok was one before leaving - were highly experienced post-Ascension warriors who could be counted on to take down some greater monsters - such as dragons, phoenixes, and basilisks - on their own, and could lead others in fights against them. Arbiters, in addition to their personal prowess in combat, handled many of the higher aspects of command. Godfather was a rank reserved for one Guardian at a time - typically the most experienced and knowledgeable. Strider was a term of respect used to address those who had left the Guardians on good terms after undergoing Draconic Ascension - though out of the ranks, many still maintained at least loose ties to the group.

"Possibly... depending on how things go," Latnok replied. "I need to see Godfather Sere, immediately, regarding this thing - also, see if you can have the armory have some more arrows and an escape orb prepared for me," he continued.

"I will pass on the message right now," the Hunter responded. He briefly closed his eyes. "The message is being passed on. In the meantime, you should find a place to rest." Latnok nodded, and moved past the two sentries.

Dex stood up. He was not sure what To do "Should i just try To leave now" he tought. He did walk a bit, but he was still limping " Damn I can not escape from them if they try something..... so the only thing I can do now is To stay". Dex slowly walked towards the group To make sure he could hear them better. He was already thinking how he could make things better for him self in this situation, but he could not forget Raclaw, the little bit of kindness shown To him was someting he had felt only once in his life. Dex was not sure how to feel about it, so he tryed to deny that he cared about that from him self "what a fool" he tought. He made it To the group, he took his usual place at the back making him self as unnoticeable as in his situation it was possible.

OOC: Loving the Dark darkSpyro theme... But how does it work? I didn't switch to it.
Star was carefully examining the map when he noticed that Dex was approaching. He readied a counter should the fox attack, and noted "You seem... Worried." Resuming his search of the map, he quickly got an idea of where to go. "Okay, I think I've got this. We're close enough that a short-range teleporter should work to get us there." Pulling out his gadget, he tried turning it on and mumbled a curse under his breath when he realized it was burnt out. "Of all the terrible luck I've had, this is the worst streak so far." He rubbed his barely-functional hind legs. "There's no way I'm up to walking more than a few minutes."
Darkheart looked at the group and asked "How about we spread our wings and take to the skies? Those who can't fly will be carried."
Star opened his mouth to argue but decided to just nod instead. It's a legitimately good idea, I can't really argue with it. "It's worth a shot. Who's carrying the venomous guy? Also, has he ever brought up his name to us?"
Darkheart sighed. "Frankly, I don't CARE who carries him. It's not going to be me. I'm carrying the dark Illusionist fox. At least he's cute."
Star immediately protested. "Don't call me cute!"
Darkheart giggled, rather uncharacteristic for her. "Are you Tsundere or something?"
Star looked away and refused to respond. If I bond with them... I could lose them like I did everyone else I loved... Might be too late to avoid, though.

As Latnok drew into the hideout, he was greeted by the familiar sight of walls with dragon skulls with torches burning within, and sun crystals which allowed for a natural day/night cycle even within the caves. There were many halls, though, unlike the rest of the caverns, halls other than the main hall of the hideout were big enough for anything bigger than a tall human to fit through. The place had many countermeasures - the maze-like caverns, the scorching lava and the heat it generated in key paths, the spirit wards, magic-controlled temperatures within the hideout, and a powerful anti-teleportation spell within the caverns and hideout themselves which would redirect any teleportation spell's directed within to a random cavern at the entrance - the last being the reason escape orbs brought the user to a defined spot right outside of the entrances, forcing even the Guardians to walk the entire way every time.

As Latnok passed, he received salutes from several members of the Ardent Guardians who recognized him. Finally, he had come to the Godfather's chamber.

"Godfather Sere," Latnok called.
"So you're back," Sere responded. "And... I can sense what you have brought."
"So you know anything about it?"
Sere paused for a moment. "...Yes... if it is what I think it is. And it is something that you should seek to separate yourself from, for your safety."

OOC: Sorry for ending on a cliffhanger, but my break was over. I will finish next break.

Star nodded. "Let's do that." He pointed to a spot just outside a random entrance. "This spot looks safe. Trying to teleport inside, we don't know what we'd find."
Darkheart nodded. "Ready, everyone?"

"What do you mean?" Latnok asked. Sere turned around, revealing the face of a man who, despite being much older than the average person could live for, possessed much strength.
"That scale... I believe the creature it came from came into contact with something known as Shadowstone."
"You know about that?
"I do. More importantly, how did you learn about it?"
Latnok paused for a second. "There was a bounty on a dragolet that I found on a board. I ran into some monsters being ready to engage it. We won, and freed it from its affliction. From there, one of the creatures educated me on it. They we're dead set on stopping me from getting a scale, so I teleported away before they could destroy them all."
"Interesting..." Sere paused. "Tell me, how do you feel right now?"
"...I feel surprisingly well-rested," Latnok answered.
"As I thought. You seem to have recovered quickly despite your use of an escape orb. Though it is just residual energy from the scale, it would seem that you are already subconsciously drawing from it. This... may or may not lead to eventually corruption."
"Wait, how do you know all of this?" Latnok asked, almost demandingly. "Why have you hid this knowledge from us?"

"Well..." Sere started. "My biggest concern is that two of our doctrines, as well as human traits in general, make us particularly vulnerable. We believe in becoming as lethal as possible to fulfill our mission. We also believe in doing what we can to further humanity as a whole. This has... led many good Guardians to seek to enhance their power with Shadowstone, hoping that they could be the ones to change things for the better for a long time to come. Good intentions, but bad results. The power, it would seem to have subtly affected you already, as you immediately thought to take a scale with you. I would suggest destroying it, but it could have unpredictable effects if you were to do so, if you could."

OOC: More after my next break.

"It didn't seem to do much," Latnok said. "The troll with them seemed to destroy other scales no problem."
"Hmm..." Sere stopped to think. "Anything special about this troll, any distinguishing features?"
"Besides the equipment? Not really. Equipment seemed to pop out of nowhere and was made of gems."
"That sounds a lot to me like some equipment especially designed for this."
"Can't our hexsmiths just make something like that?" Latnok asked. "Or can't we just cancel the magic in the scale like other things?"
"From what I know of such equipment... it's highly likely to be bound."
"Like your sword?"
Sere unsheathed his sword in response. It was designed like a regular Knight's sword, except with an ornate hilt made of silver. It was shining brigh when he pulled it out, but slowly alternated between radiating great light and being pitch-black, almost consuming light.
"Grimbane... yes. A weapon that, though effectively just an ordinary sword in the hand of most, shows it's true power in the hands of certain ones, like myself - those with great command over both light and dark magic, who seek to do what is right - no matter the cost. A living weapon, that I can speak with mentally and can talk back to me. Perhaps her equipment is similar - perhaps she is rather powerful, perhaps she possesses certain qualities and was the first one with those qualities to stumble across it, or perhaps the spirit or whatever in it felt like having fun and tagging along with her."

"Either way," Sere continued, "Shadowstone... I fear that it is the foundation of something truly wicked - beyond even my capabilities to manipulate safely for any extended period of time via dark magic. If we have a creature who may be able to destroy it, then perhaps this is best for us. Would you happen to know where that troll is, by any chance?"
"Last place I was, was north of here if I recall correctly. But... I think they may be coming to us, at least if they're interested in recovering the scale. I believe the map fell out of my bag when the scale destroyed it in it's refusal to be contained."
"Excellent. Perhaps what I have wished to do for years will finally be achievable..."

OOC: Off of work in two hours, more exposition then. Keep in mind, Spyroconvexity, that the cave path must be traversed and cannot be circumvented due to the magic.

Star climbed up onto Orion and lazily lounged there.
Darkheart practically hugged Orion's forelimb tightly.

OOC: Sorry I'm replying a little late. I was busy yesterday and this dark colored site makes words harder to read. Speaking of which, darknessdawn, you better enjoy this new look. By tomorrow, it will be back to normal.

Angora held on to Orion, ready to be transported. Despite touching him, she held her distance, still angry at Orion for letting Latnok escape in the first place. As they got ready to be teleported away, she sneezed. but then turned her head to Star, replying to the previous comment.
"I'm not surprised human would've done that. I mean seriously, when did he joined this group? Didn't you see what he was wearing? All part of dead creatures, some belonging to the same species of half the members of this group!" Angora said with disdain, still unable to explain when Latnok joined the battle. The only explanation she could find was that everyone had been too busy fighting Shade to notice him. Now that Shade was finally beaten, they got out of one problem, just to enter another one, probably even worse than the previous one.

OOC: Spyroconvexity, would you like a character sheet for Sere? He won't be as engaged in the story as Latnok, but figured I should ask.

Raclaw placed a paw on Orion, merely giving a nod to indicate that he was ready. He noticed Dex in the background trying to stay hidden, but didn't say anything. He meant what he said-- and would leave Dex's fate to the others should the time come.

OOC: I'll make one when I get home. Brother-in-law is driving me home now.

"Seriously? You think we should be working with those... monsters?!" Latnok exclaimed. "I've seen the atrocities these creatures are capable of, that's exactly why I left to -"
"- to bounty hunt, to find more creatures to kill?" Sere interrupted. "I understand that - we've all seen what they have done. but ask yourself... What is our mission?"
"The betterment of humanity, being the great equalizer between humans and very powerful creatures."
"Exactly. Yes, killing other creatures is the biggest part of what we do, and we must always be ready for that - but when possible, if working together helps us, then why not? The Guardian's Fervor is a strong driving force, but all things in moderation," Sere said, referring to the bloodlust that filled humans after Draconic Ascension. "You were not the first Guardian to leave to find more to kill - and you wouldn't be the first to return, if you so choose," he hinted. "This mission is very important to me, and I would like to have you participate in it - we would very much like me back in the fold."
"Well..." Latnok thought for a moment. "I see that, at least with the path that I was on, that I almost lost my way - consider me yours, again for now."
"Very well, then..." Sere said. Welcome back..."
Sere raised a hand. Matching spots on both forearms of Latnok's armor glowed bright white, then dimmed, leaving a red mark - a symbol consisting of two axes crossed perpendicularly, with an armored fist intersecting them.

"...Executioner Latnok."

Name: Sere
Age: 122
Species: Human
Good or evil: Good
Appearance: While he definitely has signs of aging, Sere's appearance presents absolutely none of the signs of frailty typically associated with old age, on account of the ritual he has undergone. He is a giant of a human being, standing at almost 7 feet, and has the musculature to go with it - though most of this is typically invisible under his dragonhide armor and helmet that most people who deal with him see him wearing, exactly the same design as Latnok's except with red scales, and a black symbol of two perched, fire-breathing dragons on each of his forearms to denote his rank.
Personality: Sere, though not naive by any means, possesses unshakable faith in the inherent good of humanity. He highly values the lives of all of his fellow Guardians, ensuring that they are indoctrinated in the importance of always having a back-up plan and survival over accomplishing a mission by taking unnecessary risk. Such a belief has also led to his creation of several tools to help preserve Guardians, such as the escape orb.
Weapons: Sere is skilled with a high variety of weapons as a result of his experience, but his most important one is a legendary blade known as Grimbane - a living weapon, which, while normally appearing to be nothing more than a fancy sword, shows its true power when wielded by a human it can trust, who has mastery of light and dark magic and who believes in doing what is right, no matter the cost.
Elements: Sere can use various elements proficiently, but is especially skilled with light and dark magic.
History: Sere is currently the oldest and most experienced of the Ardent Guardians, a position he has been able to survive long enough to achieve as a result of the combination of his belief in the importance of self-preservation as well as his dedicated efforts to not only make the Draconic Ascension ritual safer, but also eventually turn it into something which extends a human lifespan, rather than shortens it. He has seen many atrocities and has suffered much loss over the course of his life, but maintains his faith in humanity regardless of those things. He holds some secrets due to his desire to protect his men.

Dex nodded. He walked as fast as he could To join others. He did not feel like talking but he started to believe he would not be killed and now he was confused. As he made it to Orion he started to look at Shade "Is this the same Shade. Was I really working for a mind controlled version of him." Dex thought

"So how did you find out about Shadowstone anyway?" Latnok asked.
"One day," Sere began, "long before you were born, we began receiving tales of a mine in a mine town becoming haunted. Stories of a man here and there becoming possessed and attacking their fellow men like, well, men possessed. Naturally, we went to investigate, but the town was several days away.
"Unfortunately, by the time we got there, the entire town was wiped out. However, we could find no evidence of monsters - all evidence we found pointed to men killing each other, like some mass frenzy. Looking through the mine, we began sensing massive magical power. Leaving the less experienced among us behind, we began further investigation. Strong amounts of magic emanating from even small fragments of a mysterious dark stone. We figured we would take some samples to study, making sure not to come into contact with them.
"That turned out to be a horrible idea. When Guardians realized the power of what they held, they sought to use its power. Unfortunately, as we now know, it came with horrible side effects, which we could neither cure nor hope to understand. I... condoned these experiments, admittedly. Those were horrible days, of Guardian killing Guardian. By the time it was over, our organization was in ruins.
"Of course, it wasn't until after all of that, that I was able to successfully identify it via long forages into many libraries. I am the only living Guardian that has any knowledge of it, until now at least.
"I do not know where its power derives from - I do suspect, however, that its power originates from a wicked, maddeningly powerful entity, who wishes nothing but the destruction of sentient life. Monsters showing signs of Shadowstone possession is something we have had to contend with for a long time, yet even knowing that, I've had to keep the knowledge of the source of their power hidden, despite my desire to make every Guardian as lethal against every enemy as possible. The heart of this wickedness is something I wish to see purged from this world, and if this troll and her companions show the capability to do something to that end, then it would be a threat humanity will never have to contend with again."

"That's quite a bit you've had to deal with," Latnok said. "As stoic as we have all trained to be, I never thought anything of what you have had to face. Important to know, which I forgot to mention. The one who educated me. She is a dragon, black, and seems to possess both knowledge of the substance and immunity to it. Probably worth noting."
"That is good information to have," Sere said. "Now, you said they should be able to track you down, right? If they were to attempt to teleport directly into the hideout, they would be brought to a random spot within the cavern, and may end up becoming lost as a result... ah, yes, did they seem to possess teleportation magic?"
"Not that I was aware of, but I definitely wouldn't put it past them."
"Yes, then worth consideration. The map should be able to guide them through the caves should they come in through the regular entrance, but there is the possibility that they fail to grant adequate protection to the map, and it burns up as a result. Therefore, I will send some hunters and an executioner to guide them. Not you, mind you - you will remain here for now. This is, of course, in anticipation of them showing up. Provided they do not take the map for whatever reason, or lose interest in you, or otherwise get lost, we will have to take means to track them down."

OOC: Tried to be consistent with what I know about Shadowstone so far, please let me know if anything is inconsistent with the established canon and I will sneakily make adjustments to bring it in line.

OOC: Well... That just threw my intro plan completely off the rails. I will come up with something else, but a bit later when I have time to deliberate.

OOC: @A Guy: Shadowstone, in the original story for Darkheart, was a dark, corrupted form of ordinary stones. It's extremely prone towards corrupting those with magical ability, although purely non-magical creatures are highly resistant to the side effects, as are creatures already aligned with darkness. It's near indestructible. As a sidenote, in the original story, Darkheart was Cynder's ancestor, and had, however unintentionally, corrupted Malefor. She was a Legend of Spyro OC.

Darkheart seemed dazed, but got through it just fine. "I can still feel the trail of Dark energy that Human left behind."
Star seemed particularly ready to hurt someone. "Humans. Always the same, even in a parallel universe. It doesn't matter to them who gets hurt if they achieve their goals." He unsheathed his hard-to-spot claws and licked the edges in anticipation.

Angora didn't like magic, and teleporting just reminded her of it. Her staff has been the only magical object she ever possessed before meeting Orion, and it responded very little. She was hoping that with her new lantern-armor, the staff would obey her more frequently.

OOC: Ascended Guardians have become highly magical, despite their human nature, so it would make a lot of sense for them to be affected.

Absolutely no one was at the entrance - instead, it appeared to be blocked off by a wall of rock jutting out. The usual sentries were currently inside for the meetings in which either the Godfather or an Adjudicator speaking on his behalf passed word to everyone, taking place typiy three times a day on most days. The wall, while capable of stopping most lesser creatures from progressing, could be broken with heavy tools or powerful magic, both of which would make surreptitious entry into the hideout impossible.

"...and so, it is imperative that we allow these creatures to come in safely," Godfather Sere announced with a booming voice, definitely meant to be heard, within the auditorium, past the main chamber, through a hallway too small for anything larger than a human to fit through. "You are not to harm or kill them except in the defense of your own life or that of other Guardians if they prove hostile and unwilling to reason. In the event that your survival is in question, immediately alert me via telepathy and I will see to your safety. The mission details, unfortunately, cannot be revealed at this time, but your cooperation is key nonetheless."

Star jumped down and landed with a yelp. "Ow... Bad idea to be literal there..." Looking the wall over, he knocked at various points, trying to find a weak spot.
Darkheart rolled her eyes and extended her claws before slashing at the wall repeatedly in a criss-cross pattern.

As Star and Darkheart assaulted the wall, the torch in the dragon skull above burned with increasing intensity and brightness, and the shadows of the group members extended. Next to the two appeared the figure of an unusually tall man, clad in armor similar to Latnok, except red and with the symbol of two dragons with crossed fire breath on each forearm.

"You brazenly attempt to break into a place like this?" the figure asked, sternly and calmly. "Do you know what awaits you ahead? Are you lost? Would you like to try to kill us? Or are you seeking to discuss certain matters?"

Star growled and bared his fangs, ready to tear the Human apart. Darkheart pushed him away and bowed. "I'm terribly sorry, there was a bunch of stone in the way, and we're trying to chase after someone who may have endangered us all. He took a scale corrupted with dark energy, and teleported away. Lucky for us, he left this map. Is he perhaps a fugitive?"
Star snapped at her. "Why are you telling him? He's probably one of Latnok's allies!"
Darkheart pinned him under a paw to keep him from causing any more trouble. "Don't mind him. He's got a bit of an issue with Humans. Personally, I prefer to judge by behavior, unless upset badly enough."

"Ah, yes," the figure said. "Latnok is here. He has brought the scale here for analysis. We have deemed it something which is better off destroyed, on account of containing residual energy from a creature exposed to something known as Shadowstone. We believe we may have similar goals in that regard. We will remove the barrier and permit you entry for further discussion on the matter, should we have some guarantee of your good will."
The figure then turned to Star. "This is not the place I would try to pick a fight. Unless you are vastly more powerful than many demons, the average human here is more than strong and skilled enough to kill something like you without a problem. We have no quarrel with those who have no quarrel with humans, however."

"Well, well, well, a Galaxy Dragon!" The man's voice lit up. "That would explain how my teleportation countermeasures were circumvented." He offered a quick bow. "I am Godfather Sere, current of the Ardent Guardians. We would be honored to have you. I am presenting an illusion right now, but you will see me and Latnok in person in the main chamber, straight ahead. I will see to it that everyone is given a warm welcome." With that, the torch ahead went back to its normal intensity and brightness, Here's illusion disappeared, and the earthen wall opened up to reveal a wide path, adorned with many similarly styled torches.