darkSpyro

Raclaw found himself instinctively sitting down, as if on command. His memories and mental state were a mess currently-- and he had briefly flashed back to one of his much younger memories back when he was more pet-like. He quickly got back up, however, and looked at each individual member of the party. "Darkheart has a point-- we need to quit with the arguing and work out our differences. Me, you, her-- all of us.," he then said looking at Latnok and Angora respectfully.

Angora agreed with them, but was way too furious to say anything about it. Instead of defending her, Raclaw sounded like he was reprimanding her with the earlier lecture. Nobody, not even the Galaxy dragon, was coming to her defense. They've all let Latnok insult her and make her feel lousy about herself. She glared at Raclaw before hiding between the cave and Veris' shadows, wanting to be left alone. Whatever bonding she and Raclaw were doing, had been completely shattered by Latnok's insulting interference.

Veris, upon hearing Darkheart's roar, instinctively stood up and roared back as he flared his wings.
"Stand down, Veris," Sere commanded, and the wyern obeyed.
"Well, then," Latnok said, as he slowly came to a sitting position, "let's hear your solution for this, then. I'm all for having people stop starting fights or threatening to blow up the world over petty things, but that is something that should be a unanimous decision," he added sarcastically.

Darkheart gave Latnok a glare that could curdle milk. "First step is to MOVE. ON. Second step? MOVE! ON! Seriously! Let's try starting with a clean slate. Forgive and forget... As hypocritical as that seems coming from me..."

Angora found it hard to believe Latnok was still being his infuriating, biased self. He has stopped with the antagonism ever since they entered that realm, and just when she believed he would leave her alone, he had to come up with such an ugly display. She wasn't even insulting him this time, and she was even willing to forgive Raclaw for his rudeness a few days ago, but Latnok just made her return to square one. She was so depressed, she didn't even flinched when Veris roared. Once he calmed down, she felt like talking to someone.
"How lucky you are right now Veris. Just being lazy and eating whenever you please, and not having the responsibility of the world on your shoulders." Angora commented, though she was aware that the wyvern's life must've been filled with a lot of pain as well. She couldn't begin to imagine the amount of torture he had to endure to learn not to turn on his captors, cause a creature like him could easily kill an unarmed human if given the chance, and given what a glutton he was, it looked like a likely scenario.

Dex was now thinking very hard. He knew it would be better if somebody thought him as a ally. But what he wanted to say was " it was just a reflex" , but he did not. Out of his messy feelings about what he should say and what he wanted to say the final outcome was just a peaceful "Dont get ahead of yourself" while saying this his face was more normal then ever. At the same time he was thinking a lot, but also nothing.

"Okay, move on. That's it. Sounds easy enough," Latnok replied, not really caring about Darkheart's gaze, and obviously having his doubts on the feasibility of the concept, considering that the troll kept digging up old wounds. "Now, is there a second thing? There has to be, this plan can't be THAT simple, can it? Because honestly, I just want to do what I get paid to do and get this over with, what with the dark one chipping away at my mind and whatnot..."
Veris let out a low growl in response to Angora and lowered his tail, as if he could sense her emotions. He seemed to have calmed down from the initial upset of Darkheart's roaring.

OOC: THIS is what young Raclaw looked like if anyone is curious. And that was done by me way back in early 2016 I believe.

"Darkheart is right once again-- STEP ONE is to move on. We need to see each for who we are now; not a week ago and not a year ago. STEP TWO is to treat each other with kindness and give everyone a chance. That means no more pointless bickering and no more insulting-- let's set our pre-existing feelings aside and see each other for who they really are. STEP THREE is no more ignoring and respecting people's personal spaces-- if they want to be alone or if they want to carry out an private conversation, let them. If they just want to be heard and listened to, then listen. And no matter what, no more silencing. If anything, that has proved to only make things worse.," Raclaw quickly said trying to calm the situation down.

OOC: That's similar to the one you're already have. But with more detail to the face

As Veris comforted Angora, she listened to what the rest were saying, and doubted Latnok would follow any of those rules. For once, she wasn't insulting him. What's more, she was bonding with somebody. Was that the reason he butted in? To prevent someone else from liking her?
"Seems like you're the only one I can talk to without anyone butting in Veris. But of course, that's cause you can't understand a word you're saying, can you? Heh, what a humiliating irony. The only ones that like me are just you, a pet, and a machine. You're just an oppressed animal, and what does a machine know about feelings? Seems like I'm destined to be hated no matter what I do." Angora said with a broken voice, her throat hurting so much. She was really trying to hold up the tears, and she would always lift her head to keep them in her eyes. Still, even if Veris couldn't understand her, it sure felt good talking to him, even if he couldn't reciprocate the comment.

"Sounds reasonable," Latnok responded. "Though I will reserve the right to silence in order to preserve my own sanity, or at least to enable me to focus on the mission when others would wish otherwise. I just want to get this thing done, after all, before that corruption eats away at my mind. That is all I want - mission accomplishment. I do not believe that is too much to ask."
Veris once again let out a low growl, and bringing his head to Angora's face, began to nuzzle her. Though he didn't seem to quite understand what Angora was saying, he did seem receptive to her feelings.

"When you're such a jerk, it is." Angora whispered quietly, responding at Latnok's last remark. However, with her throat hurting and her getting sleepy, the words sounded more like gibberish. When Veris began nuzzling her, she couldn't hold back the tears anymore. She let out a few out, sniffling quietly and hiding under Veris' imposing shadow to make sure nobody but him could see her. Overwhelmed by all the responsibility, insults and heartbreak, Angora finally succumbed to exhaustion, falling asleep right on top of the giant wyvern's snout. Nobody, not even her own family, had demonstrated her this much compassion before. Not an adorable animal or a talking being ever gave her a chance. The only ones that have ever showed her any form of genuine love were children, who didn't have enough malice to despise trolls, and this gluttonous, oppressed creature, who seemed to be the only living being in the entire group to be willing to look beyond her species and temper. This creature, who was natural enemy of trolls, have shown more kindness to her than the rest of the group combined.

OOC: It wasn't just you-- DarkSpyro has been slow for me all day with the connection cutting in-and-out since at least noon. :

"Fair enough, but please consider your actions before doing so. Simply silencing someone who annoys you isn't always the solution-- I believe that it is possible to work things out and to give second chances. If there are any specific concerns that anyone may have or anything they wish to share with the party, they should speak now while we still have the time. And I may have something to get off my chest as well, if it is alright with everyone.," Raclaw said speaking as if he were some kind of counselor and looking around the cave. He looked at Latnok and Sere, inferring what he wanted to get off his chest so badly. Anyone who shared a link with him and dared to look into his own convoluted thoughts could tell that he had bottled up feelings. Between that and whole mess with the corruption, his telepathic web so-to-speak wasn't exactly a pretty sight. The open connection was only getting worse too, albeit slowly.

"I'm listening," Latnok said, as Sere continued to work silently to the side, though ever attentive. "I am more than willing to work with those who are capable of reciprocating, as most of you have shown." Though he could sense Raclaw's feelings, they were so mixed that he wasn't really able to decipher anything meaningful from them. His own feelings were mostly suppressed, leaving mostly his own focus. "But let's hear what you have to say."
Veris, somewhat confused at Angora's reaction, stayed in place, for the time being, as he laid back down.

Instead of just dozing off, Angora was finally asleep for real this time, snoring quietly and feeling safe, even with someone as dangerous as Veris. Even though she had a dreamless sleep, she was still subconsciously thinking about her childhood. Trolls didn't make great parents, and only trained their youngs to be vile but cunning savages, cause they were taught that was the way the world was going to treat them. They just acted that way before anyone else had the chance to act the same way. Trolls had many enemies, and only a few were accepted into their society. Those who didn't have the approval of the tribe were instantly banished, and when they had seen that Angora wasn't growing, everybody, even her own parents, agreed to kick her out to fend for herself, believing that having a runt like her would cause them bad luck and make their enemies and other troll tribes think they were weak.

So Angora lived for most of her life simply traveling, stealing everything she could when she had the chance, hunting for food when she couldn't steal any, and avoiding predators and beings who either caught her stealing or were able to identify her as a troll. It was a life she wasn't pleased about, but it was the only one she knew, when traveling up that mountain to meet the legendary Galaxy dragon changed all that forever.

"Very well.," Raclaw simply said as he gathered his thoughts. Although the Guardians had began to earn some of his trust again; he was still somewhat unsure of what they could possibly do to him if they didn't like what he had to say. Granted, his collar no longer had any influence on him here but what about later? And granted, he had overridden or disabled most of its known functions before he came in contact with its creators. However, there was always going to be that concern going forth knowing that they could possibly take back control at some point or otherwise have some level of influence over him. Yes they had promised him certain things, but they still had a reputation to keep intact.

"Before I begin-- I would to apologize as this may be a sensitive subject for some of you and directly involves others of the party. You may not want to hear it, but please remember rule number one. I would like to tell you a little bit about my past, where I come from, and how it directly concerns certain members of this party. I will try to keep my thoughts as unbiased as possible, but please be aware that even I have things that I am still trying to get over. To begin, I was raised on a farm-- by humans. This collar I wear is a direct result of that. And again, I'm sorry if this bothers anyone.," he started pausing as old memories flooded into him and he gathered his thoughts once again.

"As a young pup, or perhaps hatching is a more appropriate term, I was found at the side of a road with almost no prior memories. I was found with nothing but a collar, but it was no originality collar and it looked more advanced than what you see now. I was found by a bystander ,who would later end up studying magic, and dropped off at a nearby farm. It was there that I was raised for nearly 16 years of my life. As I grew up-- I developed no magic, no telepathy, and couldn't even properly communicate with the locals as they spoke a slightly different dialect then your typical common. The collar would soon prove to be irremovable and was in fact the cause of my lack of abilities. That beside, I had a good life. I was loved and I grew up alongside a furry creature that humans would refer to as a dog. We played together, we ate together, and in time I even came to understand them.," he recalled old memories running alongside a sand colored German Shepard.

"As time passed and I became more aware of my own restrictions, being unable to properly hunt or defend myself-- I became more desperate. More anxious. Eager to explore and yet-- unable to. We soon found a specialist in the nearby village who specialized in the subject of magic artifacts and one who was in fact.. the same bystander that had originally found me. It was with his help that we were able to find an ancient manual of sorts, which detailed an ancient artifact that would prove to the predecessor to the very collar that still rests around my neck to this day. I won't go into detail on it or the collar itself, but just know that its an older variant on another newer collar with similar traits. Anyway, with the use of ancient magic-- we were able to alter its functions, restore my abilities, and ultimately remove it if I so chose to.," he continued purposely not going into detail on the collar itself or the ancient manual.

"Now I'm sure you're wondering why I'm telling you and I shall now tell you. And once again, I apologize. I need to get this off my chest, but I will refrain if anyone objects or doesn't want to hear how this story pertains to the party.," he then said pausing and waiting for any objections. He looked at Latnok and Sere in particular, as the next part of the story would directly reflect on their organization's past actions.

"You're free to speak," said Latnok. "We have nothing to hide, and don't do anything without reason. Go ahead.' He could sense Raclaw's unease and apprehension, but it was better to get this out of the way now than later, while they were all discussing things on their mind.

"Thank-you.," Raclaw said looking at Latnok before continuing-- feeling more comfortable having gotten permission. They say its better to ask forgiveness, but those people didn't have nearly as much on theirs plates than he did at that very moment. "Now... where was I? Ah yes-- it was on that faithful day that we were successfully able to modify the collar and that it could have been removed at any time. However, I was hesitant and as the final restriction was rendered mute... I had actually pleaded to keep the collar. I had wanted some sign of my past and something to remember my family by. Or at least that's what I told myself at the time. So I kept it and used more of the ancient magic, ancient variants of what are now simple commands, and was able to successfully form a bond with it. I would maintain control over its functions and I believe now that it had actually aided my abilities ever so slightly-- at least enough to create an gap in my natural telepathy, as I soon discovered once I stepped beyond the gates to this summit. But..but that wasn't all I would discover. What I am about to tell you some of you already know. But... no more secrets.," he then said partly admitting to having a problem with the open but reinforced connection. The party had already known that something had happened-- only they now knew part of the cause as Latnok had probably already suspected.

"The whole reason I even bring this up at all is that I came here in part to search for whatever remained of my past... of my parents. Another reason was to discover the origin of my collar-- who and where it came from. And it with the Guardians that I had found some of the answers I was looking for. When we had first entered their lair, I had asked if they had ever imprisoned and or contained a dragon-- to which and to my surprise they truthfully responded yes. There was a reason I had asked that question and it was because I had felt... something. Part of me had suspected the moment we encountered Latnok and it was we had entered the armory that I would know first part of the truth. The truth-- the truth is that my collar is of Guardian creation and in fact one or two models behind that of the same collar which restrains Shade. They both share the same capabilities and both can be manipulated in a similar fashion, although mine differs in that it also accepts an more ancient method of control-- and is now also unlocked providing me with near infinite access to all of the power that had been taken from me throughout my youth. So long as outside magic isn't blocked. It is through the ancient method of control that I now share a bond with it and why I believe it had created an open exposed connection in its place. I cannot close it as I've tried multiple times, but I am keeping it reinforced so that the nipping darkness doesn't consume me.," he continued admitting to himself and the others exactly why he had such an open connection. Or at least what he had now suspected-- even if it meant that he was partly at blame for it.

"Anyway, that wasn't all I had discovered and it wasn't until Sere joined us that I was told the rest of the truth.," he paused wanting to be very careful in reciting the words of the Godfather. "In the spirit of being honest and getting everything out there, I'll give you a couple options. I can explain what you had told me in my own words-- or I can let you explain it to the others. If you wish, I can also project the previous conversation to the others so that they hear the same exact words you told me. I'll let you decide.," he then said looking a Sere and giving the Godfather a chance to explain in his own words if he wished. He believed in second chances and wanted to give Sere the benefit of the doubt.

OOC: Truthfully I'm getting of tired of writing this and have work soon. I'll type up the rest tomorrow or you can do it if you wish. The conversation starts on page 33 at post #1624.

As the minutes went by, Angora slept quite pleasantly despite the irritation she went through earlier. Her body was quite exhausted, and had given up on her at that point. Even though she was sleeping, her other senses were quite active. Raclaw's word echoed through her mind, and even though she couldn't make sense of them, she could still hear them. If only she hadn't been missing this story. She could've comprehended Raclaw much more. But, there she was, still sleeping on the wyvern's snout, much bigger than herself, with the creatures' gentle breathing rumbling like a mountain with subterranean activity. It was a strangely soothing sound, and as the tiny troll slept, so did her mind, apparently not being targeted by whatever dark corruption was befalling many of the others. Was it the armor? Neo? Or her own will? It was hard to tell.

"Very well," Sere said, not showing much, if any doubt. "I will explain further.
"At the time, human nations were looking to completely wipe out dragons within their areas of influence. However, we believed there was an opportunity for mutual benefit - rather than simply eliminate dragons abd be done with it, perhaps there was an opportunity to live together. Granted, this wasn't an altruistic motive - but would be mutually beneficial nonetheless, ideally at least. So to that end, we were granted eggs or hatchlings from dragons we have worked with in the past, who were either unable or unwilling to look after their own children for whatever reason.
"The initial trials, while showing some potential, ultimately ended disastrously due to hatchlings being unable to control their own power, and sometimes turning on human children in a fit of rage or confusion. We were put under pressure to either make this work more safely or to cease, and have the human nations go right back to wiping out the presence of dragons anywhere remotely close to their borders. So we came up with another plan. We would modify the design of an artifact we previously had - a magical collar which linited the power of a dragon, allowing for a degree of control by a Guardian. This new collar would limit the power or a child dragon - however, it would have reduced control functionalities, compared to the ones we used on hostile dragons. In addition, once these dragons were grown and showed to both be amicable and capable of controlling their powers, we would be able to activate them, granting the dragon access to all of the power it had stored up until that point, as well as marking them as a friend, to every member of the Ardent Guardians and all of our allies. In addition, should they so wish, they could pass these on to their children, to grant them this power instead.
"This proved to be much more successful. The dragons were allowed to stay within human borders as long as they had our trust. However, as you can imagine, dragons willingly giving up their children would be a rare occurence indeed - the program was not sustainable. And unfortunately, it could have negative effects on those dragon children, the worst happening if we ceased being able to track their growth and guide them, which could happen if the Guardian tracking them fell in battle, for instance. Ultimately, though it is not a series of decisions we were proud to make, we felt that, in tbe greater scheme of things, it was better overall - we would have more dragon allies, and more dragons would be able to live within human borders, without the threat of extirpation within the spheres of influence." Sere paused, awaiting any reactions and questions.

"As for something like you, I can't quite say," Sere said. "I do not know what point in your life that you received the power that you have, whether you naturally developed it or were imbued with it at some point. However, I do have to say, that you were likely not made to have as much power as you have." Sere began to create an illusion with his hands, to illustrate his point.

"Take humans, for example. In the early days of the Ascension ritual, the end result was extremely powerful humans - however, they had difficulty controlling their power during the later stages, and would eventually burn out and die, like a conflagration running out of fuel. However, nowadays, in addition to adjustments to the ritual and guidance through the transformation process, we have a rigorous training program for our Initiates and Apprentices to greatly enhance their physical and magical strength and stamina before they undergo the ritual, and additional training in control afterwards, that ensures that the men who endure the transformation are prepared for it - I specify men because they are the only ones we will accept." At this point, Sere's illusion stopped.
"That said, your power seems to affect you not just physically, but mentally, so I doubt it will be as simple as bottlenecking it. If we were to do more research, perhaps we could understand better - however, your case is unlike any I've experienced before."

"I can vouch for the mental aspect of your power. In addition-- I can feel it actively seeking out any open connections including but not limited to my own. And.. and it's not just not because of the mental link ether. I can still feel that connection firmly in place, but I can also feel another connection nipping at what would've been the connection to my collar. It may not only be acting upon your own connections, but also duplicating itself and partly acting on its own as well.," Raclaw said as his eyes briefly flickered black mid sentence.

"That's the part I am having to hold back, as the open connection it is trying to take over is capable of controlling or at least influencing me. It's not entirely you though-- it's partly my own fault for forming such a strong bond with my collar with in the first place. At the time, it was the only way to take back control. Now... now it's negatively affecting me in an area where its kind of magic is blocked and leaving me partly vulnerable to such attacks.," he then said making a couple more minute mental adjustments. Within his thoughts-- there was a constant mini-struggle between the corruption, his open connection, and the mental barrier he had formed to prevent the worse from happening again. Indeed, the open connection was the connection that had been intended to control collared dragons under certain circumstances. That control became more of a slight influence once he had overridden the collar, but the potential was still there. And the corruption was trying to take advantage of that.

"It is probable, though not certain," Sere said. "Though it i something that seems to be rather distinct about you, Latnok and Raclaw are suffering some exposure to it via their connection with you, and they do not seem to be significantly more powerful yet, outside of the time Latnok was able to directly siphon power from you via the collar. However, it might be that it only affects the original host, or they just haven't hit the threshold yet, and the corruption will only grant them more power once they are strongly under its influence - this being more probable if the corruption is sapient." Latnok was disgusted by the thought of becoming a vessel for the corruption - howevr, he had confidence that he would be able to hold it off until it was vanquished, or at least escape before then.

As Sere was done explaining to Shade, Angora was slowly waking up after more than an hour of sleep. She felt in a much better mood than before, and didn't even cared about Latnok's infuriating interference earlier. However, she was a bit startled when she found out where she was sleeping.
"This... oh Veris..." she whispered to herself, feeling quite touched at this creature for being so patient and gentle with her. She looked at his closed eyes, both just slightly smaller than herself. She couldn't remembered whether she fell asleep there of if Veris picked her up, but it was something heartwarming to behold. Then, she felt really embarrassed at the possibility of anyone noticing her in such an awkward position, and when she heard the humans and Shade talking to each other and the rest of the members scattered around the cave, she hoped nobody ever noticed. She didn't know whether the pseudo dragon was sleeping or just dozing off, but she tried to gently slide down his snout to leave him alone and maybe train a little more if necessary...

As the group talked, Raclaw had noticed that Angora was no longer present feeling somewhat disappointed. Out of everyone in the group-- it was Angroa who he wanted to tell the most and now the troll was missing out on his story once again. He thought about recapping it to her later, but knew that he would probably have to wait until Angora was willing to listen again. He looked briefly disappointed before turning his attention back towards the others.

OOC: We lose power here, like, three times a week. Unstable energy they say

Angora manage to leave successfully without waking Veris, but before she began her training with Orion once more, she felt so touched by this creature's compassion that she had the need to reward him somehow. Making sure nobody was seeing her, Angora opened her bag near his nostrils, letting the smell get to him. She still had three pieces of meat, not very big but she still felt one was enough to reward him.
"Lookie lookie, look what I got for you." Angora said in playful teasing, waving the meat near his snout so that he would notice it. Veris wasn't as bloated as before, but even before that, he seemed very interested in food, so she knew he wasn't going to reject the opportunity to eat something so easily accessible.

Star nosed at the ground. Looking at Dex, he said in a somewhat odd tone "Dex, I'm going back inside. Latnok wanted my help with something, and I need to speak to Angora. You can come inside too if you want." With that he walked in and rejoined the group. He was starting to view them as a replacement for the pack he'd lost so long ago.
Darkheart looked at Shade, somewhat grim. "You've certainly got an overflowing amount of dark energy, more so than even me."

Though Veris continued to slumber for a brief moment, he began sniffing and soon became fully roused from his sleep. Mesmerized by the meat so freely presented, he bit down and quickly devoured the entire piece. Satisfied, he let out a peaceful, low-pitched humming sound.

"If there is nothing left for us to discuss, then Latnok and I will finish the ballista," Sere announced. As if on cue, Latnok noted Star returning to the group.
"Hey, Star, perfect timing! Need someone of your skill - how effective is your illusion magi- err, whatever you call it?" he asked, motioning towards the ballista pieces they were currently assembling. "Godfather Sere and I have a plan to capture a storm claw - the idea being that it will allow us to study them, allowing us to prepare better for them. Not only that, but if we are correct, they would possess some ability to sense weather patterns - it would make our trip through here much safer if we could receive that information from it.
"Basically, Sere will lure it into an arrow web trap I will have set up. As it slows down, I will fire a shot from our makeshift ballista to rip one of its wings up - mind you, it's not any fancy military equipment, but one shot will be all I need. Should be, anyway. So, what I was thinking was, would you be able to disguise us as something inconspicuous, like a tree? If so, that greatly simplifies the process for us." Latnok wasn't quite sure about how far Star's abilities extended - but even if he couldn't help in that manner, surely one of his fancy devices could do something?

Angora was about to hide the meat when she heard her name being spoken, but Veris took it before she had a chance to statch it away. Perfect timing too, since nobody seemed to notice what she just did. She knew she took a humongous risk being that close to Veris with food, but she has come to trust him very much. Now that he got his reward, Angora left him alone to rest, casually walking around the cave, stretching and pretending she had just woken up. She went near Star, having recognized his voice when he said her name, but she was going to let him pop up the question. She didn't want him to know she heard him. Even though she wanted to train a little more, and maybe have some fun with Orion, she wanted to know why anyone would need her for anything...

Raclaw gave a nod to Latnok and Sere, silently thanking them for giving him the opportunity. He then looked towards Shade, feeling the dark Dragonoid's despair and desperation. "Don't worry-- we'll get through this. And one day, we'll all get what we're after. It's only a matter of time.," he then said staying calm and remaining hopeful. He hoped for Shade's sake that they were indeed able to rid him of the corruption. And for himself, he had hope that the Guardians would find what he was after as well. At the very least, the party was now just a little bit closer and he could breath a little bit easier.

Angora still waited for Star to say something, giving occasional glances at Shade and staying clear out of his presence, still finding him too unstable.

When Orion warbler's about the impending night, she looked at the sky and she could see that it was indeed getting dark. Her nap clearly the time go faster. She didn't want to sleep just yet, so she took charge of the fire, grabbing two rocks and making a little campfire of her own, pouting while looking at Latnok. She wanted him to see that she needed no stinking magic to take care of herself, and if the sword and armor was in her possession, it was because she wasn't given any other choice. Nothing else.

As the sun settled and night became active again, Raclaw stood near the entrance and wondered what exactly was out there. He knew now that the previous restful night would be the last night they would be able to get a nearly uninterrupted rest-- and that nearly cost them three of their part members. Shade was almost taken, Dex was nearly killed, and who knows what would've happened to Star had they not found him? In addition-- the corruption was only getting closer and it was unlikely that he would be able to fully let his mind rest again. No... he couldn't let anything like that happen. And one watch might not even be enough, considering that Shade had been taken under the watch of Orion himself. Raclaw merely watched and listened, too anxious to fall asleep just yet.

He also wondered what the others thought of him now, having told them the truth. He was glad that he had finally told them, but hadn't exactly been proud of his past. While others might've done grand things or experienced great loss, his past was a simpler one and one that left him more timid as a result. He was a former pet who had successfully managed to get out of that life and he was searching for his parents. It wasn't exactly a grand quest, and collar antics aside, it meant that he was a lot less experienced-- even less so then other dragons his same age. Part of him wondered where he would fit in this world and what impact he would make on it. Another part of him wondered what he would do after he had discovered what he was after and after the party had presumably saved the world. Would he be remembered for being nothing more than a former pet? Or as something more?

Star looked at Latnok and tilted his head. "I'm afraid my natural Illusion only extends to myself. If I evolved, I could do it without a sweat." Then he grinned. "But I do have a device that can imitate my Illusions perfectly. It manipulates a specific form of electromagnetic waves, a very specific wavelength, which like my natural Illusions can fool all five - or six - senses." He glanced at Angora. "I just need to set it up. And Angora, I need to talk with you after."
Darkheart stared out into the night. Her body 'glowed' with pure darkness in the night, making her look like a dragon-shaped black hole.

Finally confirming that she was called, Angora went to Star, with Darkheart's odd condition not going unnoticed. It gave her the creeps, but nevertheless tried to ignore it.
"Fine. What do you want?" she asked, face to face with Star and trying not to sound too rude. If the black fox wanted to talk to her, she imagined the only subject was about the little trinket she borrowed earlier.

"Sounds excellent," Latnok said. This plan just might work out after all... "We have night to worry about first, though. We should probably keep at least two on watch at a time, and I'll try to lay out the ward over a wider radius." Whatever hellscape this place was during the day, Latnok was sure that, with their luck, it would only worsen at night - but they would be ready.

Sere noted Darkheart's odd glow. "Hmm, that brings back memories... of something, I think," he muttered. No time to dwell on it though - the ballista still wasn't complete. Veris seemed to be much more alert now, visibly agitated by the sounds he heard from outside; the hostility in his face was easily apparent.

Dex slowly walked in. He really wanted to be outside and just hear what everybody was talking about, and not having to take any part. But after what had happen he thought it might be best to be inside for the night. He did not say anything taking a place close to the enterance and lied down.

"I'll take first watch. And whoever wants to join me-- feel free.," Raclaw said still staring out onto the abyss. As the night got darker and the crystals began to give off a slight slow; it did indeed help calm the nerves. "I'll also widen my horizons so-to-speak and keep an eye out for the thoughts of any creature that may wish to interrupt our otherwise peaceful night.," he then said looking back at the others with his eyes briefly changing to black. He knew it would only bring the corruption just a little bit closer, but he would also open the mental barrier just a little so as to allow his senses to expand beyond what he was currently limiting them to. Although he tried to moderate when he did it; it seemed oddly comforting when he did open the barrier even just slightly. And the occasional leak no longer bothered him as much as it once did.

As Dex walked in, he paid no attention to the fox choosing to let him be. Like Angora, he would let him come in his own time.

"You'll need someone to take the first watch with," Latnok said. "As Godfather Sere and I can sleep very efficiently, we will take second or third watch. Now, I have to get the ward set up..." Latnok stepped off, setting up next to the fire Angora started. Sitting down, he began casting the warding spell, the exact same way he did last time. He visibly strained as he went through the motions, mostly due to the wider radius he was casting it in.

"These stones... are they sunstones?" Sere asked Orion. "They seem pretty similar to them, at the very least. The Ardent Guardians use them quite frequently to allow us to experience the sun even as we dwell in our stronghold underground - in addition to making great weapons against vampires."

Star looked at Angora. "I... I'd like to teach you how to work with my technology. Being able to activate Digi before he's complete... I find it impressive."

As Angora suspected, whatever Star had to say to her, it had to do with the device.
"Digi? So it has a name? Heh, how cute." Angora commented with a grin, finding it funny how some little trinket working on electricity could have a name.

"Sure, I don't see why not." she then said, accepting Star's offer. She had nothing else to do anyway, and since she already slept, she knew she was going to be bored out of her mind. Plus, technology seemed more fun... and obedient than magic, so it was worth learning about it.

Star attempted another smile, again showing off more than the fangs most Zorua showed in a smile. "That's the name of the AI. AI stands for artificial intelligence. And, honestly, I should be thanking you. Being alone for so long nearly drove me insane, Zorua prefer to live in packs, not by themselves." He pulled out a bag, and showed Angora the contents: various electronic parts. "The first part to making a technological gadget is gathering the necessary parts and putting it together properly. I've got a gazillion spare parts in here." He pulled out the directions for putting together his datapad and showed her. "I'll read the Unown Runes to you. Yes, that IS what they're called. I've got the parts necessary to make a second datapad, and you'd probably have plenty of use for one."

Angora saw the parts and almost got a headache. Before Star showed her the ruins, she talked.
"Well, clearly that's something you find on nature, don't you?" she said sarcastically, looking at the parts. She didn't know if they were metal or other materials, but it looked very complicated to make. As fun as dealing with the device was, the same couldn't be said for building or fixing it. Still, Angora was willing to pay attention and learn as much as she could. Digi was far better than those heavy encyclopedias, not to mention that he talked. You didn't have to read and take so much time.