darkSpyro

As Raclaw walked alongside the group, he kept an close eye on both Shade and Latnok. With now three different minds linked and three vastly different personalities; any number of things could go wrong. He could feel the slightly increased sense of duty or discipline, likely that of Latnok's mind. And he could both feel and see the power flowing into the Guardian-- and coming out as visible blue flames. 'Impressive.,' he thought never having a seen a human process such abilities before. And while he still retained his true self, being the conduit of the this whole mess of connections, he did feel some increased sense of duty. It was actually almost a relief and the whole web of connections seemed somewhat more stable with Latnok's presence. He was temporary too lost in a adapting to the new connection to be worried about the continuing, be it prevokes, antics of Angora.

OOC: On mobile. Will respond more in a bit or in another post.

Latnok harmlessly deflected the blow with a swipe of his left arm. "Paralyze." Shade was acting up again - he had to be restrained until he was calmed down. "If you try to harm anyone, including me, we will stop until we are certain you are not a threat anymore. Do I make myself clear? I will not take anything from you, and I will put you down if I have to."

"Shade! Latnok!," Raclaw said snapping out of his blissful walk. "Shade... You have to calm down. Latnok is under a lot of pressure and may not be his self. And Latnok, you have to give Shade a break. He's only trying to deal with his situation the best he can. We will get through this, but we have to cooperate and get along-- for all ours sakes. Yours, his,.... And mine.," he quickly said as if getting between two fighting siblings. His mind was trapped in the middle of all this mess, so he would feel the blunt force of it if anything went wrong. As he spoke, he spoke with slightly more urgency than usual-- and slightly more tone.

Star shook his head. "No, I'm referring to adamantine, siccatite, inubrix, noqual, djezet, abysium, and horacalcum. They're extremely valuable for technological devices, but are incredibly rare. Thankfully I only need trace amounts for my ChronoModifier. But it won't get me back to my original timeline. For whatever reason, when I accidentally left it, I couldn't return." The little fox tried to hide tears. "It's my fault they died... Not a single survivor..."

"Please... He's only trying to cope and you're not making things any better. And if he gets stressed out-- we all get stressed out. Remember that.," Raclaw added. This was why he was hesitant to suggest the mind link at first-- and now he was linked to not one but two other individuals.

By this time, Angora was simply furious. Shade didn't do any mayor damage. He was simply voicing his frustration in a harmless way, yet something as submissive as a tail whack, especially coming from a dragon like creature, still got him punished.
"This again? You imbecile oaf! That's your solution to everything!" Angora yelled, getting off Shade's back. She knew that getting him paralyzed angered him. Remembering that Latnok made himself deaf to her, she got out her sword to voice her own frustration, threatening to cut him if he didn't remove the spell...

Latnok had had enough. "NO. Before I do any such thing, we WILL set some ground rules. We have bent over backwards to keep you alive, and I am doing everything I can to stop myself from exploding right now, and you decide to attack me for it?! You WILL NOT lay a paw on anyone here - ESPECIALLY me. You WILL cooperate. You WILL NOT make this any harder than it has to be. Next time it won't just be paralysis - it'll be a big shock as well, if the situation doesn't force me to kill you outright. Do I make myself clear?!" Though there was plenty of anger, there was also a strong feeling of his determination, which would bleed through his connections - Shade had to be kept under control, for everyone's sake.
He wasn't done yet, though - he fearlessly turned to address Orion this time. "It might be in your best interest to stop him from trying to kill me. Guess what? I die, the collar detonates, killing him. If he somehow doesn't die, he loses control again, possibly overwhelming Raclaw as well - do you want Raclaw with the enhancement of his collar and Shade at his full power to both be fighting you? I don't think so. We have to keep this beast under control, and I will not tolerate anything less than that."
Sere interjected. "This is madness - we cannot agitate Shade, but at the same time, he has to stay under control, or we are forced to restrict him. Certainly him attacking us is not something to just brush off and tolerate."

Darkheart and Star looked at each other briefly, then Star growled again. "I don't get why you numbskulls can't cooperate! This task should be simple enough! Just get from point A to point B without murdering each other!" The little fox adjusts something in his ruff of fur. "If you guys can't cooperate, then I think Angora might be right that going on ahead would be the safest course of action for all. As for Angora herself..." He turns his somewhat unnerving gaze on her. "I suggest you... And the others... Try to control any bias you have, no matter how much it's confirmed." The last part was a stinging remark with the majority of his ire directed at the humans. "Frankly, I don't normally work with humans. They killed my only friend. But in a dire situation like this, we either join together or die alone."
Darkheart was left to stare as the Zorua turns away. "Well... THAT was a speech." She mumbles.

By this point, Raclaw was beginning to look visibly stressed out from all the tention coming from both sides. He wasn't used to having to manage the combined personalities of multiple people-- and the unexpected introduction of of an agitated Latnok wasn't helping things. Any bliss he had previously felt was replaced by anger and he tried his best to keep his cool, lest they have three agitated members of the party.

Angora was surprised somebody agreed with her. She had dismissed this little fluffball all this time, and now was showing tremendous wisdom. It was enough for her to put the sword down.
"Fair enough. You're too right. No need to get our blood boiled because of the ignorante and stupidity of a few." She commented as she climbed Shade's back again, this time without kicking him. Even though Star was right, it wasn't any less fruatrating working with these humans. Everything was going rather well with the group until those two showed up to increase the tension.

The agitated Latnok, hearing Star, was somewhat calmed, taking into consideration what he had to say more than anyone else. "Release." The collar ceased its paralysis. "You keep that in mind, Shade. Next time you attack me, I'll retaliate like I usually do against those trying to kill me. Work with me, and I will have no problems with you. Do you understand?"
Seeing Angora return to mounting Shade, and still slightly agitated, he telepathed to her "That's right, little girl. Hate us humans all you want, even you can't be too dumb to realize that we're the only thing keeping Shade in check right now. We go, he loses control and is at full power, and Raclaw might lose control as well. Keep that in mind next time you want to step up and try to attack me. I have you silenced for a reason - you are the only member of the party that I have yet to have any sort of productive discussion with. Leave me alone, and don't interfere with my work, and I will have no problem with you."

Star climbs into Latnok's bag and yawns before curling up. His tongue was sharper than his claws. He fell asleep quickly, having relieved a massive amount of stress with that tirade.
Darkheart glared at Latnok. "You DO realize I heard that telepathy, right? You really should watch how you say things..."

"Eh, I stopped caring about how I talk to her," Latnok said offhandedly to Darkheart. "She's paranoid of everything I do and isn't bound to change her opinion of me regardless. I could save an orphanage and she'd think it's some nefarious plan to murder their parents." Latnok then turned to address Shade. "When the troll butt in to my conversation with Orion, I didn't attack her. So no, I wouldn't have. It's a thing called discipline. You may wish to exercise it."
With Star in his pack, Latnok felt perfectly calm again. "You know, at least I can have a reasonable conversation with you, even if we don't always agree. You don't seem to have any innate issue with me, and you at the very least understand, if you don't agree with, why I do things." As of yet, Latnok was completely unaware of Star's problems with humans - he did a good job of not displaying it at every opportunity.

Star woke suddenly in time to hear Latnok. He yawned and responded, still drowsy. "I'm a pragmatist above all. I lost my ideals long ago because, newsflash, ideals don't get things done. Sometimes, the only way to get things done is through pragmatism. And I, for one, will do whatever it takes to get things done... Even kill."

Throughout the entire ordeal, Veris was calmly at Sere's side, wary, but not doing anything more but growl at Shade - he didn't even so much as snap when Angora brandished her sword. "You know," Sere said, "that's quite odd. I've never seen Veris ignore an armed troll before. Guess her 'compassion' might actually mean something." It wasn't anything to dwell on, however. "We must keep in mind that both positive and negative emotions can easily be shared by Shade, Latnok, and Raclaw. Latnok... be careful. You know I'm counting on you to keep the situation under control." Sere stopped just short of condemning Latnok for his actions - he would do that later, in a more private setting, verbally so the other connected minds wouldn't catch it.

As the others began to calm down, Raclaw did as well resuming his walk alongside the others. 'I fear our little tri-mind-link may cause more harm than good in the end-- I'm sorry if I'm causing more trouble then its worth. I'll try to keep my... our emotions in check.,' Raclaw said via telepathy directing it at Latnok but knowing that it would probably make its way to Shade as well. He had heard Latnok's previous remark as well and didn't want to feel as if he were being nothing but a burden to the others. At least Latnok's discipline would bleed over into the mix and help him keep his cool-- probably. Sere was also right in that other less positive emotions would easily bleed over as well. And even more so when it came to stronger emotions, such as anger.

Angora simply looked at Latnok, shrank her shoulders and turned her back to him, not even minding having been called little girl. She knew it was futile to reason with him, so she decided to ignore him, even if she knew how hard that was. She was aware that he was trying to restrain Shade to protect them all, but the restraint wasn't what was angering her, it was reinforcing that already tight restriction. Shade was powerful, and anger was going to make him even more dangerous, which is why she didn't want Latnok abusing his control, but of course, he wasn't seeing it that way.

She then heard what Sere said and was quite surprised. She had ignored Veris all this time, and only looked at the wyvern when Sere mentioned him. The creature has proven to be very loyal to the humans, so it was really something else seeing how he didn't reacted to her brief hostility. She looked at Veris with a look that could be considered adorable, especially for a troll, and nodded slowly in thanks. Looks like giving that boar to him was a good idea after all.

"Just ignore him! He's just a jerk who abuses his power and gets offended with every little thing. I know I'm asking for a miracle, but just don't pay any attention to him." Angora expressed, giving little massages to his is neck so he could remain calm. She was still in awe how patient Shade has been with her, and how he allowed her to mount him. Raclaw was far more gentle and yet didn't liked when she did it to him. She gave the fur dragon a sly look, almost as if saying he could learn a thing or two from Shade. Even though Raclaw had tried to make peace with her shortly afterwards, she had been just too angry at him to accept his offer.

"Mountain of dreams... how appropriate." Angora said indifferently, unimpressed with the structure. She had expected a far more sinister place given what exactly they were going to face.

Latnok shook his head. "I don't think you quite understand. Our magic is part of our blood, it's ingrained into us. We should be as fine as any dragon. Still, the matter of the collar complicates things. Who's to say that Shade won't lose complete control again?"
"I think our best bet will be to leave Shade out here," Sere suggested. "He has already shown tht he is dangerous without the collar."

Angora knew indeed how dangerous Shade was without the collar, but she also believed his powers could be useful in the task at hand.
"Well Shade is even more dangerous if he gets angry, so as long as we don't displease him, we should be fine. Besides, I'll be here to calm him down." Angora assured, looking at Latnok in particular.

She then grabbed a stick without leaving his back, but it wasn't for what she used it the last time.
"Listen, your powers are strongly linked to your emotions. If you feel like getting angry or just that you'll lose control, pace. If it doesn't work, distract yourself by chewing a stick. It has helped me in the past." Angora instructed, having left that habit but imagining it could help Shade as well.

"Very well," Latnok said, not paying attention to Angora. "I will maintain my focus ans assist Shade in staying on track." As he was saying this, he was fishing around for something in his bag, and finally found it - dragonbane paste. He lathered the head of his dagger in the substance - he didn't kniw how effective it would be on Shade should he go rogue, but something would be necessary.
"I do not know if I will be able to call upon Grimbane's power within," Sere said. "Nevertheless, we are ready." Veris let out a low growl, as if in agreement. This was it - the mission they have been waiting for.

"As long as we don't intentionally aggro him, we should be able to handle it.," Raclaw said with a nod. The new conditions also meant that he wouldn't have access to his enhanced abilities. However, that was probably a good thing seeing what could wrong with being linked to a non-collared Shade. He would simply make due with he had, as he did before the aide of the Guardians. Part of him had to admit that he did feel more powerful with the use of the collar-- an irony considering what it had taken away from him for so many years.

And yet, he had still chosen to wear it even before he knew how it could help him. Between that and his more gentle nature, perhaps Sere had the right idea from a Human perspective. If they had wanted a tame or more human-serving fur dragon; they had probably succeeded with him. And part of him knew that.

Angora glanced at Latnok with half closed eyes, seeing his dagger. Did the assist involved killing Shade? Why else would he have a dagger? She didn't voice her opinion this time, and continued to ignore him. She nodded at Orion, activating her amor to be ready for the harsh terrain ahead. She didn't know if the armor would work in that realm, but it made her feel better having it at that very moment...

"One thing we do have to consider, though, is the rest of our equipment," Sere said to Latnok. "Functions based on the natural properties of whatever composes it should be fine. The others, we will have to work on."
"So our bags, then," Latnok replied. "The regeneration should work, but the hyperspace pockets will need us to maintain the spell ourselves as opposed to just being fine with their current charge." With that, Latnok and Sere began pulling out most of the gear from the hyperspace pockets in their bags - pulling out some axes, many spears, many, many arrows, some replacement armor, escape orbs, various jewelry, and enough brews, potions, and other compounds to run a pharmacy. Together, they began going through the goods.
"Thank the gods for the phoenix fletchings," Latnok said, elated. "I should still be able to charge it with spells, even if the tips have lost their enchantments. Bow is living wood from the Tree of Vitality, so that should be fine too. My axes will be harder to empower with strikes, though. The silver axe will lose its properties, so only creatures innately weak to silver will be worth using it on."
"I will have to enchant every spear manually before throwing it," Sere said, resignedly. "I may just settle for using my magic. Grimbane may or may not work, or it may require me to power it. As for our various concoctions, most of them should be fine, though some only work because of our enchantment." Sere began separating those concoctions he was referring to. There were a few more vials of the dragon blood mixture - two full strength, the others diluted. "Well, one for the road, eh?" Sere said as he passed a diluted vial to Latnok. The full-strength bottles were generally only used in emergencies - the power could often have decastating aftereffects on the user.
After chugging the contents down and tossing away the vials, they began putting the equipmebt worth keeping back in their bags, with many concoctions and jewelry left strewn along the ground. Latnok felt the huge surge of warmth, energy, happiness, and excitement that came with the usual drink. "We'll take whatever challenge you throw at us."

OOC: For reference, Latnok's pack has three main pouches - a smaller one at the front for convenient access, the middle one, which is hyperspace, and the big one at the back, and closest to his person, for convenient access to items too big for the small pouch. The large pouch holds Star and a tarp.

OOC: Wow, that's interesting how everyone except for me has fleshed everything out, and I mean EVERYTHING.

Star grumbled at the sight of the gate. "Oh joy. Pretty crystals. Be still my heart. The magic negation isn't an issue for me - Frankly, it will probably be a source of comfort since I'm used to the innate abilities of Psychic Types and the like - but I don't know about the weather. I'm, uh... Well, like all my kin, I'm a bit fragile, and I can only deal with the temperature variance if I'm not wet, since my fur is what protects me. My gadgets are also useless in rain, since the water ruins their electronic parts, so in a fight I'll likely have to rely on Illusions and trickery. And my ninja tools, but that's another topic entirely and I'm not spoiling what I've got, you guys get to find out for yourselves when we fight the whatever it is. I just hope it isn't as unimposing as the gate is." He would've made a comment about Furfrou, but he doubted anyone would get it.
Darkheart notice the mild orange glow of the Dragonbane and quietly hissed at Latnok so no one else could hear, though the method was the same as she'd used a while ago. "I know what that is. Use it without an EXTREMELY compelling reason, and your life is forfeit."

OOC: A lot of things come to me while I'm at work.

Latnok tensed up in irritation, though he was more tolerant of the voice than previously. He couldn't pinpoint why - perhaps it was the dragon blood brew? Dragons who knew dragonbane would often feel a sense of dread just seeing it. Even the Guardians had to be careful around it, as it would cause them significant pain and severely cripple their draconic power on contact. "i would be foolish to come without a backup plan," Latnok responded to Darkheart, low enough so only she could hear.. "Should Shade lose control, I will do what I have to. Of course, that's not to say I can't use it on another dragon if we come across one."

OOC: LOL That reminds me, I need a job.

Darkheart nodded. "Just be careful with that stuff. Even full-grown dragons have died from a mere scratch." Standing upright and returning to her usual voice, she asked "Is everyone ready, or should we make a plan of action?" She directed her gaze at Orion, who likely new what was at the top.
Star, meanwhile, was wondering about the mountain's name. "Hey, Orion. Is there a mountain of hopes too? Maybe a mountain of nightmares? Heck, are there any other mountains of interest?" Then he hurriedly added "Uh, only asking out of scientific curiosity." Much as he hated to admit it, he was starting to see the beauty of this world... And the hope he felt within was terrifying beyond anything Darkrai could show him in his worst nightmares.

OOC: A job plus this RP is the reason I've been up to 8 or 9 in the morning.

Raclaw gave a nod, indicating he was ready. Similar to Star-- Raclaw was a fur dragon and naturally relied partly on his fur for protection from the environment conditions. However, he also had his fire and would fare much better then the smaller fox-like creature. Still, it wouldn't be the most comfortable climb for him. He was ready to face it through-- and do his best to keep Shade in check at the same time.

Star giggled in the usual Zorua laugh. "Of COURSE there's one for my namesake." He rushed over first and stopped right at the gate. Taking a deep breath, he went through... And felt nothing. Is it because I'm from a different timeline? Or just because I was expecting more than would happen?
Darkheart gestured for the others to go first.

Angora was already ahead of him, taking the term quite literally. She was bracing herself on Shade's neck, not wanting to risk being blown away in case the place had strong winds. She was used to visiting new, unknown places thanks to her nomadic life, but this was a magical place. Magic and her weren't very compatible. It was hard to think that a place with such a beautiful entrance had an foreign, unshaped evil lurking inside.

"Heat-wise, I should be able to cover us..." Latnok started, as he raised his right hand. "Damn." Looking at the gem in the gauntlet, he realized that it wouldn't function past the gates - making the casting and maintenance of any spell which required a focal point, such as any projectile spell or the cooling spell, significantly more difficult. "Correction. I will be able to cover myself and Star. The rest of you suckers will have to figure something out. As for rain, I have my armor, and my pack is watertight and has a tarp which Star can use." He entered the gate without further hesitation.
Meanwhile, Sere was perusing his various polearms - he wanted to limit how much he needed to carry on account of having to maintain the hyperspace spell manually while within the gates. In the end, he settled for a halberd on his person, a lance carried on the wyvern, and a glaive and barbed spear in his pack. "Veris should be able to handle the extreme weather. I can adjust light to make the environment warmer or colder, though it is far from a perfect solution," he said as he followed Latnok through.

OOC: You guys are gone for the whole day and make 3 posts at once when I'm making one? Are you trying to spite me?

OOC: Unfortunately, many of us have the same free time

Angora spitefully looked at Latnok, convinced that he was being annoying on purpose. He just called everyone suckers for not being as equipped as him. Why did he had to be such a jerkass? Making good of her self promise, Angora said nothing, but was really bothered on how much of a show off Latnok was being. There he was with his master Sere, showing how spacious and magical their bag was and how many weapons and potions they had. They even had dragon blood, and nobody seemed to mind. The only thing that made her feel better was imagining both humans without any weapons or their precious magic. Humans were really a pathetic, delicate creatures if they needed so many objects to feel safe.

Raclaw was the next one to step through, stopping just before the gate to look back at Shade. 'Remember-- just stay calm and take deep breaths. From this point on, it'll just be us without the aide of any collar. And I'll do all that I can to keep us calm.,' he said via telepathy to reassure Shade of his presence. And with that little bit of reassurance; he then stepped through the gate feeling the very moment where the collars would be rendered useless. Part of him felt... free as if a small burden were lifted from his chest. With the collar's magic rendered mute, he no longer had to deal with the brute-forced connection he shared with it. From this point on-- it was just a collar and nothing more. He looked back and gave a gentle reassuring nod to the dark Dragonoid, as if to say that it was safe.

Uncertainty was always something to be expected, but nonetheless was never pleasant. Latnok felt uneasy learning so many things only upon actually getting to their destination. "Offerings? Like what? Some jewelry?" It would be convenient, but Latnok knew it wouldn't be that easy.
"Orion... what are the threats to Angora here?" Sere asked. Getting to the heart of the mission. "Grimbane needs to draw significantly more power from me here in order to function - what of her armor? Grimbane is sentient, not sapient - Neo being sapient, is it any different for Angora's? And what sort of enemies will we be up against?" The environment made Veris uneasy, and he incessantly darted his head in various directions, keeping wary of threats.

"Well here, chew!" Angora instructed, forcing the small stick into the side of his mouth as she held on to one of Shade's many horns. She needed him to distract himself from a potential power flow, for she would be the first to receive the surge if he went rogue. Her concern drifted away when she heard what Orion said.

"Wait, offer? OFFER? You didn't say anything about that before! Why did you waited until now to tell us that?" Angora asked angrily, feeling like she had nothing to give. She only had the armor and sword that were once a lantern and a staff that never obeyed but that she nevertheless didn't want to give away. She also had Neo, but she couldn't give those away. What she could give? The rags she had worn for years that were below her armor? The rope collar she had? The improvised bag with the boar meat? None of them seemed like a very appropriate gifts, so what coukd she possibly give for her to gain entry?

Raclaw shared similar concerns. 'An offering?! But what do I have to give?,' he thought to himself. The only physical procession he had was his collar and the same could probably be said for certain others in the party. And even if he wanted to, they couldn't afford to give the collars for the sake of Shade.

Angora scoffed, not convinced by the answer.
"Not very helpful, just like Neo." she muttered irritably, Orion not being very specific. Why couldn't he be more detailed?

She was about to express her irritation when she noticed Shade struggling with himself. She moved to his snout so she could be eye to eye with him and also add a little weight to try to prevent him from breathing fire.
"Alright, listen to me! You're letting this thing control you! Who is inside who? Who's the owner of these powers? You're letting it manipulating you like a puppet. I thought you were stronger that that." Angora said, trying to add a little psychology. She was rather annoyed at Shade for not fighting his own powers better. They were barely entering the shiny void and he was already giving indications that he was about to lose himself.

"Well, come whatever may, we can take it on," Latnok said confidently. "We have a job to do." Speaking telepathically, he said to Shade "Stay focused. We will be fine. There will be things to fight, where you can just let loose. Just hang on for now."
"Is Veris going to have to offer something to come with us?" Sere asked. "If so, there's always a scale. I take it Shade and Raclaw may offer something similar - a piece of themselves?" If that was all to the offering, then he and Latnok would be fine - they had plenty of gear they could spare. The others? Not so much.

Star thought for a moment, then, reluctantly, pulled out an old locket. Opening it, he tried -and failed - to fight back tears at the memories it represented, with the last friend he had, who had been slain by humans. The reason for his grudge. Inscribed in his handwriting were the words 'The humans did this. They will pay for their crimes.' Pulling a hidden lever, he looked at the clock hidden inside, warped to complete uselessness by time travel. Closing it, he clutched it. "Would... Would this do?" He asked Orion.
Darkheart looked over herself. She didn't have anything but the scales - and, more literally, the scars - on her back. What could she possibly offer? Her darkness-tainted scales? Her contaminated blood? She wasn't sure either would be a suitable 'offering' to ANYONE.