darkSpyro

Meanwhile at the base...
Quote: A Guy

Latnok beamed, which was fully visible on account of his helmet not being on at the moment. "You know, I know just the game," he said. "We call it angleball. Meant to help improve reactions and creative thinking in regards to attack angles. Played in an enclosed space, split in half. Goal is to get the ball to land on the ground on your opponent's side of the field. Main thing is that you must have the ball ricochet either off the wall or the ceiling before it lands on your opponent's side. If the ball heads to your opponent's side but ricochets back to your side before either player hits it, you may hit it again. There are several spots in the rec rooms we can play it in. How does it sound?" Latnok, having never owned a dog, wasn't quite aware of the affinity Raclaw had with those sorts of games, but was excited to give it a try nonetheless.

Raclaw's eyes lit up upon hearing about the new activity; not expecting such as response and seeing Latnok beaming as well. "It sounds great-- let's try it!," he nearly instantly responded with a big grin on his face. He almost sounded overly excited about the activity and increased his pace to more of a mild sprint as he walked alongside Latnok. 'Angleball, huh? I'll have to remember that.,' he thought to himself. He was glad to see that the Guardians weren't all business and that even to them-- it never hurt to have a little fun every now and then.

OOC: Agreed-- I'm enjoying your new posts!

Quote: cyndego

Ooc: Thanks. I thought it would be my turn to make something small happen, since everybody else have made great stories in this rp and I have pretty much just enjoyed my time with them

" This is interesting" Blue said
"What is" Dex said ending the conversation he had had with Sapphire
" I just saw another dragon, there was some riders there too. They just landed i think i must go say hello" Blue said clearly having something else then saying hello in his mind
Dex who was not able the see because of the waterwall did not know what Blue was talking about " Just keep going, the mission is the important thing here" Dex said.
"Sorry but that is not going to happen" Blue said and landed quickly

What Blue had saw was no other then the group of Shade, Angora and Maverick.

"Well who we have here flying around" Blue said making the waterwall disapear making Dex and Sapphire able to Jump of his back. Dex was about to shout to Blue that they had no time for this when he realised who they had just comeby with "This is not good" he thought. But did not say anything wanting to think very clearly what he would say. Sapphire quickly took a place close to Dex.

OOC: We're glad you're active again. You are making the RP even more interesting

Angora was glad to be away from that lake and finally back on land. Maverick was still thinking about that mermaid, and if he will see her or her friends again. But for now, like Angora, he was ready to set his feet into a town again. But as he got ready, he heard a voice.
"Angorita. Did you hear something?" he asked, Shade blocking most of his view. He just knows he heard a voice...

Ooc: It is great to be It is really rare to have rp like this, with so many great people with their own ideas still wanting to see what others can do.

Blue quickly made a move turning into a small line of water moving like a snake... a really fast snake. Turning back to himself behind Shade " Sorry was I not clear enough. I said hello" Blue said with clearly more threatening then friendly voice.

Dex quickly run after Blue Sapphire following him. They stopped close to Blue. " Whats the point in this. I am sure you are not in a need of new friends" Dex then said to Blue not looking at the others. He was trying to play time. He knew it would not take too long for somebody to recognize him, but this way he could at least play it was a surprise any of the group would know him.

After some strolling through the stronghold, Latnok and Raclaw reached the recreational room he was referring to. Latnok found an unoccupied angleball room, with the appropriate equipment - that is - the ball, ready. "The only thing used here is the ball and your body," he said. Closing the door and stepping to the opposite side of the field, he tossed the ball over to Raclaw. "I'll give you the first serve."

Quote: cyndego

Ooc: It is great to be It is really rare to have rp like this, with so many great people with their own ideas still wanting to see what others can do.

Blue quickly made a move turning into a small line of water moving like a snake... a really fast snake. Turning back to himself behind Shade " Sorry was I not clear enough. I said hello" Blue said with clearly more threatening then friendly voice.

Dex quickly run after Blue Sapphire following him. They stopped close to Blue. " Whats the point in this. I am sure you are not in a need of new friends" Dex then said to Blue not looking at the others. He was trying to play time. He knew it would not take too long for somebody to recognize him, but this way he could at least play it was a surprise any of the group would know him.

Angora almost screamed with the sudden interruptions, not liking to be greeted like this. After regaining her composure, she spoke.
"And who the heck are you?" Angora said, noticing the unfriendly greeting. She had been looking forward to a peaceful evening on the town ahead, and she didn't anyone ruining that.
"Angorita please! Be nice." Maverick instructed, once again, wanting her to avoid making a bad first impression.
"Good afternoon eh... señor...? We're just strolling to that town over there, so if you could just please let us be on our way." Maverick asked politely but rather nervously, this creature making him uneasy. Whatever this blue being was, it resembled a dragon somewhat. How funny it was to find another one in these parts with such a particular ability. Nevertheless, even if the stranger was smaller than Shade, he was still intimidating, so Maverick wanted to be nice. Neither of them noticed Dex behind their greeter.

"Well thats a good advice. You should listen to him troll" Blue said pretty much the same voice. "I am not here for you in fact, I have much more interest on your friend here".

Dex now knew exactly what Blue was after. He knew he liked to attack groups for their stuff, but also to take the potential members with him to the brotherhood. Dex made his way in front of Blue. This time Sapphire thought it was better not to follow him. " I am pretty sure what you are planing is not going to work. So do you really want to start a fight here. They look pretty strong so Why would we fight in a battle which could end up in any way. Thats not How we usually do things, when we fight we want to be sure we will win right?" Dex said clearly being serious

OOC: It would help if you could specify what friend

Now that Dex finally made his appearance known, Maverick and Angora finally recognized him.
"Hey! I know you! You're that cute little fox that..." Maverick began to say, actually quite glad to see him, but Angora climbed her friend's shoulders and covered his mouth. She could sense something was wrong from that picture.

"Listen, blue dragon, I don't know who you are, but we don't want any trouble. We just want to get to that town." Angora said as she pointed to it, feeling very uneasy with this dragon. What the heck Dex of all creatures was doing in a place like this? And with such company? She didn't like this one bit...

Quote: A Guy

After some strolling through the stronghold, Latnok and Raclaw reached the recreational room he was referring to. Latnok found an unoccupied angleball room, with the appropriate equipment - that is - the ball, ready. "The only thing used here is the ball and your body," he said. Closing the door and stepping to the opposite side of the field, he tossed the ball over to Raclaw. "I'll give you the first serve."

As Latnok threw the ball, Raclaw instinctually caught it with his mouth-- grasping the ball with his teeth but in a very gentle manner. He gave a little grin with the ball still in his mouth and proceeded to throw it upwards above his head. As it fell, it landed on the back slope of his head and rolled onto one of his inverse-curved horns. As it rolled, he purposely leaned his head back slightly and purposely let it roll to almost the very tip of his left horn. And as soon it approached the tip and was in danger of falling off-- woosh! Raclaw immediately tipped his head forward and aimed towards the wall to the left of Latnok. If it worked, the sudden momentum of his head movement and the snug curve of the his horn would send the ball flying towards the wall and presumily-- ricocheting towards Latnok. He based his movements off similar movements he did with the modified ratchet and used the curved nature of his head to his advantage. Or at least, that was the intent. "Let's do this!," he thought out loud.

"You're on!" Latnok called. He wouldn't use future sight here; that would be unfair to someone who wasn't using it themselves. It would be just quick thinking. The ball ended up moving straight towards him; with a quick step back, he hit the ball towards the top of the wall to Raclaw's right. The plan was for the ball to ricochet near the top of the wall, to the ceiling, to the wall behind Raclaw, to the ground.

Ooc: I was thinking about it, but the point kind of was that Blue wanted to be unclear

Blue was happy to notice Shades approach, now he had seen that he was indeed agressive and Thats what he wanted. " Well unlike your little League we take risks when the price is high" Blue said to Dex.

Sapphire finally came in front of Blue (so that everybody could see her). She had heard what Maverick had said "Cute they say, and I was so sure that I am the cute one" Sapphire said to Dex.

Dex was now in a bad place, he needed to keep his cover up, so he could not fight with Angora and the others against Blue. But he also had to do something. Shade was strong, but if he happend to look at Sapphires eyes, then Blue could do anything to him. Even worst if others did that too Blue would not have any problem to kill Maverick and Angora. Dex finally answered first to Sapphire " I will give that title to you anytime" Dex said with a flirty smile
Then turning to Blue " Okey I guess I have no other choise then tell you Why I am really against this, you can always see right through me. This group has in fact saved my life once. But it came with a cost, I had to promise them not to attack them ever or the organisation they are protected by would come after me. I am sure the brotherhood does not need a strong organisation as a rival either, and I dont want to lose my life."

Blue was clearly confused right now " Are you trying to say they are your friends? That would be a strory, the I walk alone assassin fox having friends." He then said clearly teasing Dex

"You heard what I had to say. If you call that friendship then I might even know more about it then you. That would be kind of funny dont you think?" Dex said finally feeling like he had the situation under control. He then took a piece of paper from the bag he had and something to write with. It had taken a long time but Dex could in fact write pretty Well now.

"Thats impresive, i have to learn that from you" Sapphire said clearly even more impressed then before.

"And what you are doing now" Blue asked.

" I have to give them a letter to take back to the organisation. They will sign it and take it back. That way they will know we have met and I keeped my part of the deal." Dex said

"Fine then" Blue said clearly not liking the situation. "But before you are done with that we can atleast talk ( turning to the group). So my name is Blue, who are you and what is the organisation Dex was talking about." Blue said with much more friendly voice then before.

Dex reacted quickly he put a paw at Sapphires back " Look. I know you can read, but this is How you write you have to learn the lettering. Thats not so hard. The hard part is to learn to use a paw to do them"

Sapphire clearly happy about the fact that Dex was paying so much attention to her looked closely what Dex had done. Dex had thought Blue wanted to see what he was writing so he had in fact made it look something believable. Dex used the situation giving Angora a serious look and a mark no with his paw. He hoped that Angora would realise that he did not want them to talk about the guardians, and that he wanted them to play along.

Maverick had been calm because he thought that Dex being with them meant they were friendly, but now he could clearly sense some tension. Angora patted his mouth, an indication for him to keep quiet. It was a signal they used whenever Maverick got in trouble with the boyfriends of the women he spent time with. Getting off the young man's shoulders, she began her speech carefully, Dex making it obvious there was information he didn't want known.
"Listen, Blue was it? We are just travellers. We encountered your fox friend by chance and we and some other people ended up saving his life. This is the first time hearing right now those others were part of some organization." Angora said, not wanting to involve the Guardians with this Blue dragon. He looked very unstable. But what was Dex doing with someone like him in the first place.

While Angora talked, Maverick distracted himself by seeing the two cute foxes. The second one was indeed very cute. He even almost asked if she was Dex's girlfriend, but he didn't want to embarrass the little guy. He was looking at the female in those adorable, cerulean eyes, and felt as if he was in a trance with so much beauty. He wasn't even hearing what Angora and Shade were saying to the blue dragon...

Sapphire gave a long look to Maverick in the eyes soon She was sure her power had done the trick.

Dex still writing answered to keep up with Angoras story. "Well Yea after you left they said they will hunt me down if I ever attack you. And if I saw you again I have to give you a letter to prove i have not made any harm to you." Dex said

Blue nodding "I see now what you mean. I am just very interested Why so great organisation would make so much effort to protect you"

Sapphire walked closer to Maverick and turned to Angora and Shade. " I am so Sorry, but your friend here (pointing at Meverick ) seems bit sick or something" She said with a really friendly voice.

"Well fancy meeting you here. Never expected to see you again. And honestly, I don't know why an organization like that, if it even exists, would take interest in protecting a troll, or anyone else for that matter. We're just very different." Angora said again, having a lot of talent for lying. She knew there was something wrong here, and she didn't want to get into hot water with this dragon, literally speaking.

After being done with the explanation, she heard what Sapphire said.
"Hmm, oh, him? Meh, he just like... cute things." Angora said, after noticing his view was focused on Dex's friend. She did it in a tone to make sure it wouldn't offend her.
"Hey Maverick! Come on! Time to leave!" she said, stepping on his toe, but he was still too focused on Sapphire. His will wasn't his own now, but Angora didn't realized that there was something more to it and attributed his trance to him being fascinated by the fox couple.

"Ugh! You know what? We don't have time for this! Look Mr. Blue, we had a very long day and we really want to get into that town, so if you just please excuse us!" Angora said after a while, in a polite but evidently impatient tone, wondering why Blue was so interested in them and kept distracting them with the conversation. She figured that Dex told him something or maybe it was just that they were a very particular trio, but nevertheless, she just wanted to get out of there and leave the dragon and his fox friends to be on their way while they did the same. She didn't noticed Shade was in the same staring trance as her human friend...

Blue with a calm voice said " Your stories do not feel so good. There is clearly other reasons Why Dex does not want to attack you. (Sapphire giving a signal to Blue that Maverick and Shade are out of the game). And now troll get ready to die" Blue making a move was just about to turn into something like a spear of water to try kill Angora.

Dex however was the first to move. Blue was not waiting Dex to do anything and so the Fox gave a bite to his leg. Blue instatly feeling the pain of the strong poison fell to the ground clearly in big pain. Just few seconds and he lost his consciousness. Dex running quickly to Maverick put the note he had writen in his pocket. Then running to Angora "Two minutes and the effect will go away and then you get as far away from here as you can"

Sapphire ran to Blue "No leader nooo!" She shouted and started to cry.
Dex walked to Sapphire. " I am Sorry. He would have killed them, I had no other choise. If you really want to I can in fact still safe him."
Sapphire looking at Dex "I think I understand, but please do that. The brotherhood is all I have, and if he dies there will be no brotherhood anymore." Sapphire looking at Dexs eyes

Dex tought about it. This was perfect. He would be the hero of the league killing the leader of the brotherhood. Then he realised he was looking at Sapphires eyes, but was still able to move. "You could have killed me right there. You did not , so i am in debt of a life. (Dex walking to Blue) I learned to do this when I almost killed one man I should have not. I can in fact controll poison inside the body of others and suck it at me" after saying this Dex slowly put his fangs to Blue taking the poison away and in to his Mouth. He got away from Blue and swallowed. "He will be fine after 20 or something like that minutes" Dex said clearly not so happy what he had just done. Did he really pay a debt, or was Sapphire able to find his weakpoint he never thought he had.

Sapphire quickly before Dex had time to react ran to him and nuzzled his cheek "Thank you" She said with a voice that still had marks of crying in it. Then She ran to Blue waiting him to get back his consciousness

(The note: It had words that was his try to trick Blue. After that there was : Not my friends.... complicated... hope to see you without them... can explain)

Angora had no idea what was going on., but she knew it was bad. She wanted Dex to give explanations, but knew that if they lingered there, they would die. The Blue dragon didn't even knew her and was ready to kill her without remorse.
"Guys! Time to leave! Like... NOW!" Angora urged, clearly desperate, but even though they weren't looking at Sapphire's eyes anymore, they were still in some kind of trance. She pulled her ears in frustration, and realizing it was up to her, Angora grabbed Maverick by the back of his shirt and Shade by the tail. Being being immensely strong like a regular troll, Shade was just too big to carry, so she dragged him by the tail and ran as fast as she could. This wasn't the time to question Dex. They had to disappear from that place, so that's exactly what she did.

Angora ran as fast as she could, carrying the tall Maverick on her shoulder and dragging the giant dragon behind her. She already told Blue they were going into town, so she headed to the side of it, reaching a swamp that was part of the boundary. The swamp was dark enough to conceal Shade, and the trees and mangroves were tall and lush, making it a perfect place to hide.

Finally away from the danger, Anglra sat on a tree, swearing and beyond exhausted. Her breathing was hard and raspy.
"You... you two jerks owe me an... explanation." she said panting, dragging Shade taking much of her strength. Just what was that stupid dragon's problem? She and her friends did nothing to him, yet he was ready to kill just like that. If she ever encountered Dex alone, he had much explaining to do. It seemed like he wasn't as reformed as she had thought.

Dex happy to see Angora and the others go took a place next to Sapphire. They did not say much and just waited Blue to wake up.

Shade and Maverick were still unresponsive, and the tired Angora couldn't take any more of their stupid faces.
"You idiots almost got yourselves killed out there! Why didn't you do anything?" Angora yelled with frustration, first slapping Maverick's face and then punching Shade on the snout. Still nothing... until the hybrid started to wake up.

"Oh, hey Angorita. Nice day. Say, where is that cute little fox? And where are we?" Maverick asked goofily, putting his hand on his face. He was slowly starting to feel the pain on his face. Angora was starting to realize something went terribly wrong out there. It wasn't like Maverick or Shade at all to go all stupid and unresponsive like that... well except maybe Maverick when he was around women. Still, something really wrong happened there, and even though that swamp concealed them well, Angora wanted to move as far as possible. Chances are that the blue dragon was going to go look for them now, and that swamp was creepier than many of the places they have visited. It could have anything roaming around in the dark...

"I have no idea where we are, but I had to drag the two of you to this hellbent place. I don't know what the heck happened to you two, but I'm pretty sure that fox lady had something to do with it! I had to punch you two to snap you out of it!" Angora explained with the truth, with Maverick feeling the bump of his cheek.
"Well, you could've been a little more gentle Angorita. A face like this doesn't grow on trees." Maverick exclaimed, still rubbing his face.
"Oh don't be an idiot Malo! Stop complaining! Now one thing is certain! That stupid dragon we met wants to kill us, and he knows we wanted to go to that town, so we'll have to skip it." The troll suggested, wanting her tow companions to be on the move again.

Now that they finally got the picture, Angora forcefully picked Maverick and threw him to Shade's back, jumping herself afterwards and urging the dragolet to leave.
"Fly as high as you can Shady! High so that nobody sees you! I don't care where we go, as long as it's very far away from here!" Angora yelled, sick and tired of everything that was happening. Maverick was almost killed, she was almost arrested, and now she encountered one of her old traveling companions just to learn that he was in cahoots with some damned dragon wanting them dead for no reason. Traveling was usually fun and free of trouble, but this particular day was just one lousy moment after another. Angora wanted nothing but peace, so she memorized this place to make sure she didn't have to visit it again...

Blue soon woke up quickly looking around and realising that the group was gone.

"Leader leader! Are you all right?" Sapphire said quickly jumping up.

"My head hurts a bit, but Yes I am fine" Blue said. Dex slowly got up. "Speaking of being Okey. I do know somebody that will not be" Blue said and made a ball of water around Dex head. "You know this one right poison assassin. I am well known by the name Drowned graveyard because this is my favorite way to leave bodys behind" Blue said with evil voice. Dex could not ofcourse hear anything because of the attack. He was not moving knowing that would only make this faster.

Sapphire quickly ran before of Blue "Please do not kill him. If he was not thinking joining us he would have never saved you."

Blue smiling with a evil grin " You seriously have Feelings for this one so quickly. Well that makes our plan much more believable. I thought it must have been him who saved my life, and I am not going to kill Him. He just needs a a reminder what happens if he does something like this ever again." Blue then walked in front of Dex clearly enjoying How Dex satarted to run out of air. When Dex was about to drown Blue but all of the Dexes body under water and threw him with a high speed towards a tree. At the same time he made the water reform in to a blade that cut large wound in to Dexes back. The acid blood quickly hit the tree making clear marks to the tree.

Dex quickly jumped up trying to not to show the pain the attaack had made. But it plus the blood burning his wound has clearly making him have large amount of pain, and it could be seen from his face. "Even?" Dex Simply said. Blue quickly answering "Even."

Sapphire quickly ran to Dex "Are you Okey. That wound looks really bad. You could have been bit more fair you know leader"

Dex saw this as an opportunity to go back with his original plan " Much better now when I see that you are still around" Dex said giving very happy smile to Sapphire. " We should get moving and no more stops Okey Blue" Dex than said

Blue did not say anything just giving the mark that he was ready. And so three off them where again on their journey. Once again a fast waterball which could mostly be said to look a like a meteor made of water was going fast through air.

Angora got off, shaking and with wobbly feet. Today had been too harsh on her.
"Fine then! Let's see if we can finally have an uninterrupted evening. Come on Maverick. We'll sell a few stuff, purchase whatever we need and then leave quickly. I don't want to risk running into any more soilders or hostile creatures." Angora said, as she donned her cape to conceal her face, not wanting anybody to recognize her as a troll.

As she begin entering the town, Maverick turned to Shade.
"Hey friend. Want us to buy you something? We won't be here too long." Maverick assured, hating to leave Shade alone for too long.

The group had made it to the edge of Tal Rogas. Blue landed and noticed that Dex and Sapphire where in sleeep very close to eachother. "I have never felt so sick about my plan working" Blue thought not being a big fan of anything cute. "Wake up we are here" he then shouted and the two foxes quickly woke up.

Dex taking few steps closer to the city. "This might take some time, are you sure you want to wait us?" Dex said to Blue. "That was the deal, and now go before I chance my mind about this" Blue said. Dex gave quick nod to Sapphire and the two where on their way.

"This is so interesting. I can not know what comes out there. They can both return or then only Sapphire comes back. There is even the possibility that neither of them come back. Lets play the game, but you should know Dex in the end you will be mine one way or another" Blue thought with a evil grin as he watched the to Foxes disappearing

Meanwhile...
Quote: A Guy

"You're on!" Latnok called. He wouldn't use future sight here; that would be unfair to someone who wasn't using it themselves. It would be just quick thinking. The ball ended up moving straight towards him; with a quick step back, he hit the ball towards the top of the wall to Raclaw's right. The plan was for the ball to ricochet near the top of the wall, to the ceiling, to the wall behind Raclaw, to the ground.

Even if Raclaw had future sight, the fur dragon probably wouldn't need it as his eyes seemed glued to the ball. The moment Latnok called out, his eyes quickly shifted focus and followed the ball-- seeing it indeed hit the wall to the right and predictably towards the ceiling. He took a quick step back, used his feathery wings to quickly gain lift as he lifted his upper body, and intercepted the ball right where it would've hit the back wall-- and once again grasped it with his teeth still hovering in mid air. He gave another grin and this time threw it with his mouth and toward the wall to Latnok's right. The quickly calculated plan was for the ball to ricochet near the top of the wall and to the lower corner of the back wall, almost mirroring Latnok's initual plan of attack but with an inverse twist. "Your turn!," he called with a certain degree of excitement.

Quote: Spyroconvexity

“How about something to better carry you two? Or maybe some bags so we can carry more?”

"Don't worry about the bag. This one is more than enough." Maverick assured, pointing at his hyperspace bag. It could even carry something the size of Shade if given the opportunity.
"But I get you about the seat. We've been searching for one for a while now, but there is none your size. Most of them are just wyvern size. Maybe if we just customize one..." he pondered, his travels with Shade beginning to be uncomfortable without a seat and the lack of having something other than his spikes to hold on. He was then interrupted by Angora calling him, and they both entered the town together, with Maverick hoping Shade could find something to entertain himself while he waited. He would usually just sleep while they were in towns.

Latnok was quick, but without using his future sight, the ball was still somewhat unpredictable. On the ball's downward path, he just barely managed to bump it up with his fist; however, it hit the ceiling much harder than he had anticipated, and ended up coming down just short of the net. First point for Raclaw.
"Good job, a bit of beginner's luck but not bad," Latnok said begrudgingly. Raclaw would obviously be no pushover.

After the game had gone on for quite a while, Raclaw had developed what would have seemed to be an insurmountable lead. Despite his outward appearance, Latnok had been growing somewhat frustrated. He even used future sight in one round - no amount of future sight would allow him to outmaneuver someone so adept at handling the ball, however, and with so many means of accurately directing it.
"Okay, you win this time," Latnok conceded. "I won't go so easy on you next time, however." Despite the frustration, Latnok had quite a good time - a challenge quite unique, and it put his reaction and quick thinking to the test and showed him where he needed to improve.

Raclaw only seemed to be encouraged by the win and as they continued-- he only grew more energetic and gleeful about what ended up becoming a game of ball catching and an certain Guardian struggling to keep up. As the game ended and Latnok congratulated him, Raclaw gave a big smile and a nod. "Looking forward to it-- anytime.," he said looking at his fellow companion turned friend. He had gotten quite used to Latnok over the length of the previous journey and had gotten more used to the Guardians in general. It reminded him somewhat of the relationship he had with his father and even though he lacked the same vocal abilities he had now-- that too proved just how close an dragon and a human could get. It had been awhile since he had the opportunity to participate in such an activity, but he was glad to find that he still his instincts and that those instincts were likely what allowed him to win again and again.

"Well, we still have some time to kill," Latnok noted. Being on lighter duties for the moment, most of his daily tasks were done - just a magic class some time later tonight. Speaking of magic...
"Hey, so how does that collar feel now that we're out of that dreaded place?" Latnok asked. "No worry about your consciousness being invaded, you can feel its full power... how does it all feel? What do you intend to do?" Latnok thought of all of the potential power and uses the collar could grant to Raclaw - he would be an even more wonderful asset if he was able to harness its full capabilities. And knowing that he hadn't fully discovered his own limits yet, there was perhaps still room to grow.

Dex and Sapphire had made it to the city and it did not took them long to find their target.
" I think we should go to the shop first. Get everything we want and then move to his house for the kill. But it is still not Late enough so I say we go and see the blackmarket here. I need some stuff " Dex said

" That sounds great, but How we are going to find it." Sapphire said

"Let me show you" Dex answered and started to walk making sure nobody would see them. It did not take long for him to find a man with a special hood. He walked to him and Sapphire walked with him. "League of assassins says hello and wants to make our friendship more valuable" Dex said with a clear voice and the man opened the door next to him. Dex and Sapphire walked in "One good part being with the league is that we have good relationship with almost any blackmarket keepers, I will go to look what I need see you soon back here" Dex then said.

It did not take long for them to return. Dex nodded " I got what I needed" he said looking at Sapphire who was clearly nervous. "What now" Dex asked. " Well I bought just one thing" Sapphire said and showed her paw. There was a small necklace it was a little golden Sword, " Its for you" She said quickly clearly blushing. Dex looked at the necklace taking it from her paw and putting it around his neck. "I love it Thanks, but you did not need to" Dex said with a big smile. " But we should get going, lets find a nice place close to the shop. And when it is Late enough we go in. And after that we do what we are really here for" Dex said and so the too left Sapphire following Dex clearly happy about the fact that Dex was using her present already.

The two quickly found a good place to wait. Dex laid down. "This should be perfect" Dex said. Sapphire nodding "Can I come next to you.... it is pretty cold in here" Sapphire said with a flirty voice clearly making this the worst excuse possible. Dex smiling again "Sure". Dex wanted to know Why Sapphire was with Blue so he started to ask her questions about her backstory. That would also be great way to get time go by.

Quote: Spyroconvexity

“Perhaps something so I could ide without being seen by town folk.” Shade said.

"Hmm, that may require magic. Don't worry, maybe I'll find another wizard." Maverick said to Shade before being out of view. As he promised, they were only going to stay for a couple of hours. Angora went to get some hot soup and candy for the two of them while Maverick put up a stand. He waited for her to return, and then started the selling. They sold many kinds of things, even some of the weapons that belonged to the thief. The people here seemed to be doing great financially. Their selling was a great success. They made much money, but worried they would get mugged, they immediately closed shop, and went to see if there could be some seats for Angora concealed herself more, not wanting to be recognized as a troll. Also, they wanted to do their search discretely. They had to avoid calling too much attention...

Quote: A Guy

"Well, we still have some time to kill," Latnok noted. Being on lighter duties for the moment, most of his daily tasks were done - just a magic class some time later tonight. Speaking of magic...
"Hey, so how does that collar feel now that we're out of that dreaded place?" Latnok asked. "No worry about your consciousness being invaded, you can feel its full power... how does it all feel? What do you intend to do?" Latnok thought of all of the potential power and uses the collar could grant to Raclaw - he would be an even more wonderful asset if he was able to harness its full capabilities. And knowing that he hadn't fully discovered his own limits yet, there was perhaps still room to grow.

"It-- it feels good. I can feel the natural limits of my own abilities, but just beyond that...," Raclaw said pausing thinking of how to describe the sensation. "After being so limited for so long and after having my powers being actively regulated by the entity, it feels very freeing. It's like there's a vail and once I pass beyond that point, the possibilities seem endless. When I'm there, I can see everything-- feel everything. It's an amazing feeling and without any corruption or darkness improaching, it's an even more amazing feeling. To be honest-- I'm not entirely sure what I plan to do, but I was wondering...," he then said looking at Latnok and recalling how Sere had mentioned the possibilities of modifying of the collar to his own needs. He knew he had already opposed a lot upon the Ardent Guardians, but they seemed more than willing and now was a better time than any to ask.

"Throughout my life, this collar has been my only procession. Sure-- I've had things to keep me busy in my youth and even the occasional gift, but I am what I am and I've had to leave many of those things behind. I can only carry what I can carry on my back or perhaps my mouth, but that is no long term solution and this collar shall be all I ever have. I'm not complaining, as its more than most dragons would have and I've been content with that fact. However, I was wondering if it would possible for us to see Adjudicator Vellune or someone else who could help. I wish to have a means of carrying things and.. and to be able to have more of my own personal processions. Perhaps some sort of gem or something that allowed me access to something similar to one of your hyperspace bags? I don't mean to intrude anymore than I already have, but I figured.. I figured it wouldn't hurt to ask.," he then meakly added.

"Ah, please, don't worry about it at all," Latnok said. "You're a friend of ours now, so we will treat you as such. As for such an item... I, of course, wouldn't have the knowledge, but I'm sure the hexsmiths do. Adjudicator Vellune should be at the main forge today. You remember, don't you? Really hot there - hope you're not too bothered by it." Latnok, in preparation, put his helmet back on - avoiding exposing himself to the elements as much as possible. "I'm sure he will be pretty excited to know how far you've come with the collar..."

"Don't worry about me-- the heat doesn't really bother me. It was always more of the cold that I had to worry to worry about, although my fur can usually keep me warm. Unless it happened to be raining and cold, in which case.. I had better days.," Raclaw said recalling such a day and silvering for a second; illustrating his point. He gave a nod agreeing with Latnok and proceeding towards the main forge alongside the Guardian. He had memorized how to get there and how to get to/from the Guardian base, not wanting to get lost in vast cave network. He recalled how he had once been given a harness-like jacket in his youth and remembered the day when he had outgrown it. Like many of his former things, it was still in storage somewhere back on the farm-- just in case he had ever decided to come back for any of his old stuff.

Before they purchased the seat, Maverick and Angora bought food. The former was almost distracted by the sight of two beautiful girls entering the diner, but Angora snapped him out of it.
"Not tonight Romeo. For all we know, this town could be part of Aelinion, or whatever it's called, so let's just get that seat and disappear." Angora urged, as he pulled Maverick to the nearest store in a gentle manner to, once again, avoid drawing too much attention. They entered a store called Horses and Dragons: Only the Best for your Mounties, knowing that a store with a title like that had to have something. Not only did they sold seats, they sold other things, like traveling clothes, animal food, traps and tools. The store was mostly empty except for a couple of shady men and the clerk, who was a young woman that, despite being skinny, was quite intimidating. She glared at the new pair of customers, prompting Angora to pick up the pace.

"Alright Maverick. Any time. I don't like this place one bit." she urged her young friends, really hating this place. The biggest seats was for wyverns just slightly smaller than Veris.

"Easy Angorita. I don't think any of these seats would fit Shady." Maverick explained, as he inspected the seats. He doubted that even with some improvisation, it would fit the large dragolet. But Angora was getting desperate again.

"Well forget it then. We aren't going to risk wasting money like that. Come on! If we can't find anything, we might as well leave." Angora suggested, growing tense. Maverick noticed this and decided to please her. He did a flirty handwave to the clerk to say goodbye, and Angora started to push him in frustration, really despising his Casanova personality...

"Well, that's excellent," Latnok said. "Excellent right now, at least... at sea, not so much. Hopefully you can be kept nice and warm below the deck. Huddle together or some nonsense. Who knows, maybe we can find some fur dragoness out there and you two can sleep together." Latnok began leading the way to the forge, though Raclaw seemed much more confident in his direction this time around.

Just as Angora and Maverick began to leave, three lizard-like humanoids, partly clad in wyvernhide and wielding spears, came in. They seemed to be mid-conversation, and were not searching for anyone, not even paying Angora or Maverick any mind.
"...don't know why King Seraos hasn't already rolled in and taken this place over," one of them finished.
"Probably some nonsense about not wanting to oppress anyone," another said. "More likely not wanting to expand to more places than we can protect."
"Good thing we're killing all of those damned blighters," the third said. "Too dumb for their own good - smallpox finally has us doing what we should've done a long time ago. Shame about the humans, but this is better in the long run."
"Hah! Waste of space, they are! Only thing they're good for is fertilizer and behemoth food. Taking our caves, taking our forests, taking our hunting grounds..."
"They fight all the time in between themselves. Meanwhile, Aelinon has an army of multiple strengths, dominance on land, in the sea, and in the sky... our unity gives us strength. We shouldn't have been putting up with their nonsense as long as they did."
The trio got to the counter, where the clerk immediately had three saddles ready for them. "Your custom orders, I take it? Would you like us to saddle your wyverns for you?"
"We can do it ourselves," one of the galuds said, as he put down several seemingly valuable coins on the counter. "May good health lay before you."
"And may prosperity follow in your wake," the clerk said, seemingly knowledgeable about the traditional farewell statement. They continued to talk as they left.
"So did you hear about that group Captain Wayson ran into?"
"Yeah. A troll some hero? That's pathetic. Don't know why we should believe that."
"Came from Sere himself, apparently. Either way, if he wants to keep one pet troll alive, not my problem. Not like some baby can do anything dangerous to us."
"Speaking of, wish they would finally take care of that death knight Kanil. Isn't that their job?"
"They're not a part of the nation. Pretty stupid, if you ask me. They were part of the military before it was founded. But they don't have sailors, and Kanil and his ghost crew seemingly attack ships at random, and they won't spare even a few men hunting him down unless they know they have good odds of surviving."
"We can keep killing him, but he just keeps coming back. Would be so much easier if they could just join the nation, like us galuds did... king should probably put more pressure on them, but I wouldn't be surprised if the Guardians are pulling his strings."
"Probably will keep doing so as long as they're the only ones who can cost-effectively make phoenix steel. It is good for..."
The group left, heading for their parked wyverns.

Raclaw could see that Latnok wasn't too pleased with that later fact, although there wasn't too much to be done about that. He smiled slightly at the dry Guardian humor and gave a nod, but otherwise kept walking. He went down one samey-looking corridor and another-- and soon found himself approaching the main forge with very little guidance needed from Latnok. His eyes lit up when he saw the similar face awaiting them knee deep in forging some kind of weapon for the Guardians. "May we come in?," he gently asked politely knocking on a near wall and wondering how quick Vellune would be to recognize his voice.

The pair left the store quickly, with Angora making sure nobody was following or watching them. The streets went suddenly crowded, something that Angora attributed to people getting out of work. The sky was turning orange with dusk, and she knew that with the darkness, it would be perfect for Shade to travel. She didn't want to get caught in the dark in a place like this. She was ready to meet with Shade and leave that place behind. However, the conversation that the three lizard people were having quickly became impossible to ignore. Angora managed to catch a glimpse of their tail, and she knew immediately what they were.

"Galuds..." Angora mouthed to Maverick, signaling him to be quiet. He did so, and then both of them blended with the crowd of people and pretended to watch the outside of the other stores, while Angora's keen ears picked up the reptilian trio's conversation like a radar. Galuds were nothing strange to Angora. She has seen them in action many times in the past and knew how nasty they could be. Whether it was the smallest elf or the biggest orc, they always had some sort of war with some race, and only formed alliances to those they believed would benefit them in the future. Angora has been fortunate enough to avoid confrontation with them, and she didn't intended this time to be the first. Still, she needed to know what Aelinonians were up to. It wasn't long before she recognized Captain Wayson's name, and knew immediately that she was the troll they were talking about. She felt degraded still being treated like an insignificant being. First a child, then a toddler, and now a baby. What was next? A zygote?

"Come on Maverick. Time to leave." Angora said indignantly, not wanting to cast any suspicions with their lingering. She had to pull Maverick away since he started to be genuinely distracted by the stores, so still blending with the crowd, the pair started to leave town to meet with the lone Shade. This town wasn't Aelinon territory, but based on that conversation, it was soon going to be, and Angora didn't want to be there when they conquered it.

At the sound of Raclaw's voice, Vellune quickly turned around, as Latnok gave him a salute. "Why, welcome back, Raclaw!" he said, as he returned Latnok's salute. "No need to do any of that knocking - you can just come right in. Just working on finishing up this spear." Vellune turned back to his weapon, using force magic to help iron out the kinks as he lightly tapped on some portions with a hammer. "Something tells me you're not just here because you like sweltering heat, though. What are you in need of?"
"He is looking for something like our hyperspace bag, except something he can attach to his collar, Adjudicator," Latnok explained. Like a portal of sorts to a pocket where he can keep personal belongings."
"Hmm... I don't know of something like that," Vellune said. "No, that's not to say I can't make it - I will just need a bit of time to figure it out, probably about an hour, maybe less. Similar to hyperspace magic we use in bags, except on demand, and the space needs to shift while not being directly accessible at all times... hmm..." Vellune paused in thought for several moments, before suddenly getting back to work on the weapon. "The spear will be done not too long from now. I would recommend you wait outside the forge."

Quote: Spyroconvexity

Meanwhile shade was done playing with his spinner top and just enjoyed the setting sun as he waited for Angora and Maverick to arrive. He was unaware of the Aelinon soldiers in town.

Angora and Maverick continued walking without looking back. They almost got into trouble with some thugs when Maverick accidentally crashed into them, but Angora managed to smart talk them and distract them long enough for them to get away.

Finally, they went to the wooden border of the town, where they encountered the relaxed Shade having some fun and serving as a tree to a wandering bird."Hey big guy. We're back." Angora said kindly, quite glad to see him. She wasn't upset anymore for what happened earlier."Hey Oscurito. Sorry, we couldn't get a seat big enough for you. But... we got us some candy. Look at this." Maverick said happily, as he emptied the hyperspace bag from candy only, a pile that was as big as Angora herself. Shade was quite selective with candy, so they decided to let him pick first as compensation for having to wait for them every time they had to enter a town.

"Eh, no. Sorry big guy. We were so busy trying trying to find you a seat that we forgot about that." Maverick said, rather embarrassed.
"We did make many sales today, so we may have enough money to buy something like that. I hope we can find a wizard in our travels to help us." he then expressed, though having doubts about anything like an object to conceal such a large dragon existing.
"For now, you'll have to resort to the night sky Shady. It's getting dark and we need to move quickly. After you have some more candy, we have to leave quickly. Our little expedition in the lake is already being known everywhere. I heard some galuds talking about us, and if they see you, we might be in big trouble." Angora suggested, the whole situation having her too uneasy.

While she waited for Shade to be done, Maverick took out the big tome of creatures Latnok and Sere gifted him.
"Galuds you say Angorita? Maybe there's something about them here..." Maverick exclaimed, growing too curious about the mysterious lizard people. He would read that tome from time to time while camping or when being particularly bored, but he didn't recalled seeing about the galuds. Then again, that was one humongous tome, so evidently, he hasn't seen much of it...