darkSpyro

Angora smirked at him, ready to punish him herself if he did became a little naughty. In less than ten minutes, she fell asleep on his chest, his heartbeat acting like massages to her. It was about half an hour later that Maverick arrived on the ship, deciding to decline Alya's offer of staying there since they didn't want to be an inconvenience in such a small home. Even their farm was small, having nothing but a few goats that produced milk, which is what they lived of.
"Hey everyone. Good evening." Maverick greeted politely with a warm smile, getting ready for bed. He was about to pat Shade and wish him goodnight... when he noticed Angora sleeping below his neck. There was no way Latnok didn't noticed this. Has he actually given her permission?
"Um... señor Latnok?" Maverick said as he pointed to them, wanting answers. He really hoped he wasn't getting Angora in trouble for telling on her, but Shade was under constant surveillance, so it was impossible for somebody to not notice Angora there.

Latnok immediately had a response - briefing Maverick. "Go to bed, I have nothing for you to do right now," Latnok said. "I have things to do tomorrow morning. You and Angora are going to be responsible for Shade tomorrow, at least until I get back. If he acts up, I'm holding you two accountable. I promise you, I will NOT be gentle if he hurts ANYONE. I don't care if it's because someone calls Angora a mean name or something. Do not disappoint me." Latnok didn't really care about Angora sleeping on Shade's belly - as long as she did her job, she could do whatever didn't interfere with the mission.

Maverick still gave him a smile despite his harsh threat, not willing to let him spoil his good mood.
"Sure thing señor Latnok. I understand. Good night." Maverick said in a pleasant tone, deciding to go to Shade and sleep alongside him just like Angora. Shade was warm, and clearly more comfortable than the cramped room they had on that ship. Like the usual, he used his belly as a pillow and let the dragolet use his tail as a blanket.
"Just like old times, eh Oscurito? You'll have us like leeches tomorrow, so you better behave yourself if you don't want Angorita to rip off your teeth and use them as a collar." Maverick joked, recalling the many times in their travels how Angora threatened him the same way every time he was naughty, although he knew it had been playful intimidation. With that, Maverick proceeded to sleep himself, more than happy about today's events. They got to sleep besides their beloved dragon Shade and they have made a wonderful friend today. Maverick couldn't wait to introduce Alya to Shade.

As Maverick, Angora, and Shade eventually went to sleep out in the open of the top deck-- much of the remaining crew already was aside from the skeletal night crew, whom had gotten their fair share of sleep during the day itself. Risar had been long asleep, while Latnok and 'Team Fluffy' (as called by Maverick) were heading to sleep. "Get some sleep-- I'm sure Latnok will fill us in on more of the details tomorrow.," Raclaw said as he laid down on provided 'bed'-- an combination of feather and hay that formed an somewhat comfortable sleeping area more suited towards those of the quadrupedal body type. "I can't wait for tomorrow-- good night Raclaw!," Chester responded in the duo's own 'secret language.' "Good night Chester.," Raclaw responded to the clearly not very tired beagle. Chester had been provided his own smaller bed next to that of Raclaw's made of similar material. The couple pre-existing beds attached to the wall acted as giant shelves to the last two members of the crew that would ever need such a thing. Raclaw closed his eyes and soon awoke...

*knock, knock, knock*-- A knock could be heard on the door, no doubt Latnok wanting to get an head start. "I'm coming-- I'm coming! Chester-- get up!.," Raclaw said gently shaking Chester awake. Chester soon awoke, having no doubt stayed up longer than he was supposed to. Once Chester was finally out of bed, Raclaw went to open the door and prepared to be greeted by the eager Latnok. Elsewhere on the ship, Risar was already awake and directing prisoners to their tasks-- mopping, scrubbing, sweeping, that kind of thing. When it came to the Guardians and their ship, no-one (with few exceptions) got a free ride and there was work to be done. "You-- get over there and start scrubbing!," the minotaur shouted as the prisoner quickly obliged Risar's orders. Those who were more troublesome were still restrained, though not many were likely to try anything with Risar watching over them.

Meanwhile, Breakfast was being served to many of the crew members, many of whom were ether still injured or on shore leave. A small crew was left on duty, which would be rotated out to give everyone a break. With the duties of cleaning taken care of by the prisoners and the cooking done by one of the on-duty crew members-- that only left the responsibility of Shade to Angora and Maverick. Currently, the large Dragolet was being fed under orders of Latnok. The crew member responsible for passing out the food didn't say anything to or against Shade, although he didn't seem very afraid of the collared powerless dragonlet ether. Many of the crew now in fact had more respect for Raclaw after seeing what the fur dragon could do in combat. "Did you see what...?" "I did-- since when he have a tail spike?!" "Well... he can certainly use it.," New rumors about the fur dragon could be heard as the crew milled about on and off the ship. It didn't do much to shake off the pre-existing rumors that Raclaw had been Latnok's pet, however, and even more so the closer their bond became. "The Guardian Latnok-- he's clearly training that fur dragon. Do you think...?" "Well... he hasn't ridden him yet although I'm sure it's only a matter of time.," Some members of the late afternoon crew from the previous day gossiped. By now, Godfather Sere had been hopefully done counting the value of the previous battle's treasures. Many of the crew eagerly awaited their cut of the booty-- treasure booty that is.

Latnok had had a good night's rest that night - no doubt due to the sleep training. Before too long, he woke up on his own - the sun wasn't up yet, but Latnok felt rested enough, and could sense that dawn was near. Climbing out of his bed - nothing fancier than what anyone else was sleeping in - he took and donned his armor, like he did every morning.
Latnok went up to the main deck - and was pleased to see Risar already up, working the prisoners. The minotaur certainly had initiative, something he wished more people had. With a simple greeting, he sat around, thinking of the day ahead, until the sun finally began to peek over the horizon. With dawn having set, he went back inside, to find Raclaw's room, knocking - Raclaw answered without much delay. "Okay, you guys ready for a fun day?" he asked cheerfully. "Just tracking, followed by extermination. Easy day."

Sere had spent the whole night in the storage room, counting and appraising the goods - in his tired state, he fell asleep there, on the floor, rather than head back to his own room. In the morning, however, he was ready - slightly uncomfortable on account of the sleeping circumstances, but nothing unmanageable. He had already managed the shares - crew members would generally get an even split, with the exception of those who were significantly injured, who would receive more in compensation. He even had all of the shares separated. With everything prepared, Sere stepped out onto the main deck. "Sailors! Come get your share!" he called out.

"I'm ready-- Chester?," Raclaw said with a playful smile at the little Beagle. Chester barked a happy bark and the two happily followed. "That's a yes if you can't tell.," Raclaw then said with a smile as they walked aside the Guardian. It would be their first test of Chester's abilities out on the field, something that all parties involved were looking forward to. Even if Chester hasn't hunted before-- he was the right breed for the job and it would only be an matter of letting intincts take over.

Maverick had been happy to see Shade being his playful self again. He wrestled with his wind that night before the dragolet fell asleep. Maverick also did the same, and had spend a great night, though he also reminence of the days that passed. The whole situation started when that blue dragon kidnapped them and made them separate. Was it all his fault for selling them off? Did Shade and Angora being alone is what caused this whole mess? He and Angora were sleeping with a creature that could cause mass destruction and death, but he didn't care. He was still family, and one way or the other, they were going to help him control those ever growing powers.

When morning came, Angora was the first to be up. She usually woke up cranky and unbearable, but she was feeling in a good mood today.
"Heh, good morning you silly dragon." she said after realizing part of the sun was already in the horizon, even though it was still mostly dark. She didn't know if Shade was still sleeping or simply dozing off, but she did the greeting anyway. She then saw a silhouette below his tail and on his belly, and found out to her surprise, it was Maverick. He didn't sleep on their cabin, nor Alya's house. He chose to stay there with them, which was quite moving. Perhaps she wasn't the only one who missed sleeping with the dragolet after all. A bed was still more comfortable, but Shade was warmer, perfect for the cold nights from there.

With the others ready, Latnok left without delay, disembarking from the ship wIthout any further conversation with anyone on the boat, headed for the central part of the island to speak with the inhabitants. In the meantime, Ilasi had woken up, having slept relatively early. She headed up to the main deck, when, to her surprise, she saw Leoquin already up, staring out into the distance.
"Good morning, Leoquin," Ilasi greeted. "How are you?"
"Just doing some thinking right now," Leoquin said, as he turned his head to look at Ilasi as he spoke. "I wish the journey could benover already - but I know that I'm here for the long haul."
"Why, is the environment on the ship not to your liking?" Ilasi asked, concerned.
"No, that's not it. Most of the people here are pretty pleasant. Out there... there's some searching I have to do. I won't let it affect the mission, however. I signed a contract, and I intend to obey it." Leoquin's fists subconsciously clenched, as he solidified his resolve.
"Would you mind if I ask what it is you're looking for?" Ilasi asked politely.
"I'd rather not. Long story..." Leoquin said, as his gaze once again set out on the horizon. Ilasi didn't knoe whether the story was actually a long one or not; she did, however, figure that Leoquin probably did not talk about it for some reason that was of no concern to her. She didn't push him any further on the matter.

As the prisoners toiled under Risar's orders, they quietly talked amongst themselves. Some were discussing the circumstances leading up to their capture; how they thought the attack was stupid and something was bound to go wrong. Others were discussing their current situation; if they thought they were a bit restricted in a pirate crew before, they were now having a rude awakening. With Risar being so intimidating, they did not dare to even try to disobey or defy him. The most they could get was a bit of talk about him in low voices. "Moooooooove!" one said to another in a low voice, mocking Risar's commands.

Quote: Spyroconvexity

Shade pretended to sleep but then suddenly hugged Angora and gave her a nuzzle. “Good morning!”

The little troll suddenly found herself trapped by the affectionate dragolet's humongous paws, not that she was surprised by it. She knew he was pretending.
"Alright alright big guy. Let me go. We have a long day ahead of us, and I want to get some chores done before I'm assigned to them. Now let me get you some breakfast..." Angora commented, trying to release herself from his grip. She then had his breath right in her face.
"... and after breakfast, I seriously need to brush those teeth. Why use fire with a breath like that?" Angora finished, joking on the matter. Maverick was still deeply asleep, so she signaled the dragolet not to move too much in order to let him sleep some more. If there was someone who deserved it, it was him.

As Latnok, Raclaw, and Chester stepped off the ship-- it was a relief on the Beagle's part to feel fresh soil under his paws again. The little dog had seemingly quickly adapted to ship life, perhaps more so than Raclaw himself who had been the only one to actually throw up. Nevertheless, it felt good to actually feel the ground again and to feel the soft sand beneath your very paws. Much of the aftermath of the battle had already been cleaned up and without so many tailspike-stricken bodies lying around, it was a pleasant little beach. Chester happily ran alongside Latnok and Raclaw; the later who was briefly remembering the immediate prior battle -- his first such battle. He fondly recalled fighting side-by-side by Latnok and just barely narrowly dodging those nasty arrows; all but one of course. His wing was looking much better than it had before, thanks to the help of Ilasi and her magical miracle potion. As the trio walked, the moderately sized town was soon visible just off in the distance. Many citizens, militaria members, and sailors could be milling around-- some helping and others relaxing. The town hadn't received too much damage-- on the count of both forces having successfully held the line. Raclaw smiled at the excitable Chester as they approached. The little Beagle wagged his tail, happy to be off the ship and exploring the town alongside his two favorite 'people.'

As the group came into the town - most buildings not having more than two floors, on ground which was noticeably elevated from the rest of the land, covered in last-minute makeshift defenses such as trenches - the sounds of livestock could be heard in the distance. The sound came from a farm - a relatively big part of the town, being a community effort, with thriving crops, cattle, and several coops for chickens. Even early in the morning, there were already some working. Besides those actively working, there were very few people outside, most too busy with some other task to pay much attention to the unusual sight.
The lack of attention allowed the group to get to the farm without any delays. As soon as the trio entered, they were greeted by a farmer, with a wave and a smile. "Welcome," he greeted enthusiastically. "Once again, many thanks for your help there. If you guys hadn't shown up, we'd probably all be prisoners or dead. We've lost quite a few, and nothing will replace them - but it could have been much worse."
"Helping people in need is what we do," Latnok said. "And that brings me to the subject matter. So I hear tales of a creature which quickly unburrows, drags off livestock, then gets back into the ground before anyone can catch it?"
"Oh, so you've heard? Yeah, we've been having problems with that thing. Best we've managed is getting some shots at it with arrows, but the creature's hide is pretty thick - an arrow alone won't kill it."
"Yeah, sounds like a cattlejacker," Latnok said. "I don't know if you know who I am - or rather, what I am - but I'm a member of an organization known as the Ardent Guardians. Our job is to protect humanity and its allies as best we can - whether that be from monsters, or from those low-lives who came here. I'm looking to put this creature down for good. Only thing I need is a trace of it, so my buddy here can get a scent to follow," he said, motioning to indicate Chester. "Do you have anything?"
"Well, yes we do - some loose teeth that came off during some of its attacks, as well as some fur from an arrow graze."
"Yeah, those things shed teeth pretty quickly. Mind getting them for me?"
"No problem," the farmer said. "Got some in my house. Just wait here a few minutes." The farmer walked off, leaving the three alone for a while to analyze the scenery - he didn't take long to return however. "Here - some teeth and a piece of fur," the farmer said, presenting it to Latnok, who took it to present to Chester.

Upon being presented the teeth and fur-- the little Beagle's nose soon filled with the unique scent. Chester briefly sniffed the air and barked, confirming that he had the scent. Raclaw gave a nod, giving a double confirmation to the obvious. To most and even to Raclaw, the fur would've been just a fur. It offered no visual clue to the Cattlejack's whereabouts nor did it offer a telepathic 'signature.' This was where dogs came into play-- and more specifically an hunting breed such as the Beagle. The little Chester would get to do what his breed did best; and do so alongside both his favorite human and his favorite fur dragon. He would be ready to go the moment they were, his senses brimming and his little legs eager to follow the action.

Quote: Spyroconvexity

“Hehe I couldn’t help myself.” He then let Angora go. “I should wash my mouth out hehe.” He said with a slight blush.

"Well then, I'm off. I fed Veris yesterday, but I don't know if somebody will do it, so I better make sure. Then I'll come with a big T-Bone for you. They're plenty of them in the kitchen." Angora assured, indicating Shade to stay with Maverick. She had noticed Latnok leaving with Raclaw and the dog, and Sere being captain was probably too busy with other stuff, so Anglra tasked herself to feed the wyvern, since very few ever dared to approach him.

Angora went to the kitchen, and grabbed a humongous filet mignon, which looked like something Sere would definitely feed his beloved mount. She then went to Veris' enclosure. He was awake, but look deeply bored.
"Hey you beautifully greedy beast. Guess what I got?" Angora said playfully, hiding the filet behind her even though it was bigger than her and it could clearly be seen. Poor Veris didn't look like he was having too much fun, but after yesterday's action, it was clear that he already missed being on the field.

The smell of the meat immediately hit Veris' nostrils, and he became much more animated. At the sight of the meat, behind Angora's back but visible nonetheless, he began to lick his snout, bringing his head closer to her, eagerly awaiting the meal. Meanwhile, the prolonged exposure to the hexphage fingus on Shade had left a few spores implanted in her. Would she notice and take the appropriate countermeasures?

With Cheater locked onto the scent, Latnok let him lead the way, following behind, ready to handle obstacles as they came to them. They soon reached their first obvious obstacle - the ground. The cattlejacker had, of course, burrowed back underground after its attack.
"Hope you guys are up for getting a little dirty," Latnok said. Burrowing creatures were nothing unfamiliar to him; he had the knowledge of the appropriate spells. With a brief, sharp exhale, he primed himself with an earth shifting spell, greatly enhancing the efficacy of his digging. He began digging through the initial burrow by hand, with huge mounds of dirt shifting out of his way without too much effort.

Raclaw and Chester watched-- gobstopped at Latnok's immediate course of action. Raclaw lifted a wing to partly shield Chester from the flying debris. And before ether of them could blink an eye, Latnok had successfully dug through the initial burrow and into an larger tunnel ahead. "Well-- that was proficient.," Raclaw commented as the duo was soon able to walk in behind Latnok and the little Chester quickly took the lead again. The day light became dimmer as they entered the tunnel and we're now stepping, or digging, into the territory of the Cattlejack.

Back on deck, Risar continued to work the prisoners. He occasionally eyed Shade and whoever was dumb enough to get too close to the Hexphage infected Dragolet. It wasn't his concern, however, and someone could only blame themselves if they managed to get themselves effected-- and soon drained of all their magic.

Quote: A Guy

The smell of the meat immediately hit Veris' nostrils, and he became much more animated. At the sight of the meat, behind Angora's back but visible nonetheless, he began to lick his snout, bringing his head closer to her, eagerly awaiting the meal. Meanwhile, the prolonged exposure to the hexphage fingus on Shade had left a few spores implanted in her. Would she notice and take the appropriate countermeasures?

While Maverick continued to sleep pleasantly, almost as if he hadn't sleep for a week, the little troll was still at the wyvern's enclosure. Even though Angora knew the meat was visible and how quite risky it was to leave Veris waiting for so long, she decided to play with him to take away some of that boredom, making him chase her around with meat at hand like a cat with a mouse, using her agility to make Veris miss her attempts to take the food away. She had been so concentrated on her chores and at the day ahead that she didn't noticed the hexphage she hated so much back at Redwater. Most of the fungus was concentrated on her back, and it was quite small, so it wasn't so noticeable yet.

This was a game Veris was no stranger to; one of many that were used to train him. The tricky part would be getting the meat without hurting Angora in the process. He would keep darting from side to side, occasionally making lunges in an attempt to get the meat.

Leoquin didn't need to be told what to do that morning; some time after his talk with Ilasi, he jumped straight off the ship and into the water, heading down to yestersay's shipwrecks to see if there would be anything usable there. While he did that, Ilasi had begun her daily water desalination and purification - though not as necessary here, a stockpile could always be useful.

Meanwhile, Maverick was finally waking up. Since he moved plenty while asleep, he was sleeping on the floor, and it was no bother to him.
"Whew, that was quite a sleep. Hey Oscurito. Good morning." Maverick greeted as he stretched, not surprised to see Angora wasn't there. She usually woke up first, and would sometimes play pranks on them. But right now didn't seemed like the case, so Maverick prepared himself for the morning chores...

Quote: A Guy

This was a game Veris was no stranger to; one of many that were used to train him. The tricky part would be getting the meat without hurting Angora in the process. He would keep darting from side to side, occasionally making lunges in an attempt to get the meat.

Angora could see Veris was hesitant, and it didn't take her long to realize why.
"Aww, holding back so you won't hurt me are you? That's very nice Veris. Here, I won't hold on to this torture any longer." Angora said as she threw the filet into his mouth. She really was touched to see that Maverick and Shade weren't the only ones that actually cared for her.

Even though she would've stayed with him much longer, Angora decided it was better to attend Shade now. He needed his breakfast, as well as that brush.
"Ok Verisin, I'd love to stay with you a while longer, but I have much to do today. I'll tell your master to let you out a while, alright?" Angora assured, knowing how depressing it could be to be locked up. She got ready to leave, missing those times in the caves where she could talk to Veris alone and the wyvern would make her feel better despite not saying anything.

Within the cave, Latnok activated a simple light spell, granting the group the ability to see in the otherwise unlit environment. "Well, we're here," Latnok said. "All we have to do now is keep moving forward. There may be multiple paths - I'll be counting on you to guide us, Chester."
After some travel and some digging through a winding path, without any audible sound - at least not to Latnok - the group, as predicted, reached a chamber with multiple paths. None of them seemed to be dead ends - not as far as the eye could see, anyway. "Well, Chester, you're up."

While Latnok and his team were searching for the creature, Angora left Veris' enclosure to get his t-bone and a brush to clean his teeth afterwards. She then encountered Maverick on the hallway.
"Hey, good morning Angorita. I see you've slept well." Maverick greeted politely, then noticed Angora having some of the fungus. It wasn't very big,mand knowing how much she hated it, he decided not to speak up for now.
"Hey Maverick. Good morning. Don't bother feeding Shade. I'll do it this time, and also brush his teeth, cause that breath smells like a morgue." Angora commented, giving Maverick a playful but harsh punch on the elbow as a greeting, but then remembered something else.
"Oh by the way, didn't you bring Dahlia last night? She isn't in her enclosure." The little troll asked, starting to get worried for the dirt buffalo after she overheard some of the upper sailors talking about a certain creature on the island.
"I'm sure she's fine. She's a tough one. Sometimes she disappears for days, but she always comes to me in the end." Maverick assured, knowing that releasing her was out of the question. Angora was still a little worried, but said nothing to her friend to avoid him any painful concerns. She went to the upper deck to feed Shade while Maverick got his own breakfast...

Quote: A Guy

Within the cave, Latnok activated a simple light spell, granting the group the ability to see in the otherwise unlit environment. "Well, we're here," Latnok said. "All we have to do now is keep moving forward. There may be multiple paths - I'll be counting on you to guide us, Chester."
After some travel and some digging through a winding path, without any audible sound - at least not to Latnok - the group, as predicted, reached a chamber with multiple paths. None of them seemed to be dead ends - not as far as the eye could see, anyway. "Well, Chester, you're up."

Chester barked a happy bark and continued to lead the way-- briefly stopping once they reached the chamber. Indeed, the chamber looked to contain multiple paths all equally dark and equally unknown. Chester put his nose to the ground, letting the scent of the beast wraft into his nostrils thanks in part to his his large (relatively speaking) low lying ears. He first followed the smell in circles and sniffed each possible solution-- wanting to be double sure of the answer. 'Cold, cold, getting warmer, warmer, equally warm... wait hot!,' the little Beagle interpreted his own senses and soon found what he thoroughly believed to be the correct path. "This is it!," he barked looking up at Latnok and Raclaw. "He found the scent.," Raclaw said confirming the little dog's bark and motioning towards one of the emerging tunnels. Chester quickly led the way, with the others in quick pursuit.

Quote: Spyroconvexity

“Well good morning sleepy head.” Shade said with a smile.

"Good morning Oscurito." Maverick had greeted as he gave a pat on the snout, and afterwards decided to get some breakfast for him and himself.
"A long day awaits us dragolet. I hope you're ready." he then had said before disappearing from the main deck through the stairs and encountering Angora in the hallways.

Shade didn't have to be alone for too long, for a few minutes later, Angora came with the brush and his food.
"Hey Shady. Look what I got." Angora said teasingly as she presented Shade with the meat.
"Also, don't you think you'll be saved from the clean. After you're done, this will be inevitable." She warned as she lifted the brush, not willing to take no for an answer. She has never brushed Shade's teeth before, especially since he usually cleaned himself, but due to being mussled and whatever they fed him yesterday, it clearly made things worse.

Once Chester locked on to the scent and started to trace it, Latnok resumed diligently following him. With Chester leading, Latnok wanted to be sure that the beagle wouldn't come to harm; he activated his foresight and stayed on the alert.
As the group progressed, a faint sound could be heard in the distance; a shriek, followed by the shifting of dirt. "Yeah, that's definitely it," Latnok announced confidently. "Excellent job, Chester. No doubt it has some sort of escape route; we're not going to be running in circles all day. We're cutting it off. I can take it from here." Now that the cattlejack could be heard, Latnok could get a better sense of what was happening; he activated Earth Sense, a spell which allowed him to track things nearby each time they made connections with the ground - things such as digging were much easier to track than just footsteps. Before long, he had a read on the creature's location. "Okay, follow after me," he ordered. Just as before, he began his rapid digging; the group was on a course to intercept the cattlejack on its current path.

Leoquin had been in the depths of the water for a while; he had not found much interesting so far, except drowned pirates, weapons which would soon turn to worthless rust in the water, and food which would be ruined by the water. There was a stash of rum inside one of the shipwrecks; however, he would have to carry each bottle up individually. Maybe something to do when he was bored, but not right now. Then, something else caught his eye; a small, watertight storage box. It seemed to be rather unassuming; however, upon grabbing it, he could tell it was somewhat heavy. There might be something valuable in it; however, he didn't want to risk ruining the contents by opening it underwater. He grabbed the box and began making his way up to the surface.

Raclaw and Chester quickly followed-- the little dog having nothing this time to prevent the flying dirt from splattering all over his Beagle coat, the browns becoming more emphasized and the blacks becoming more subdued. As they followed close behind, Raclaw activated his own senses and could detect the telepathic presence of something further ahead; despite the hard dirt that still stood between them and their target. As they got closer and had almost made contact with the Cattlejack's ongoing tunnel-- Raclaw could pinpoint the the precise location of the creature and briefly shared the information with Latnok just as he had previously on the ship. "We should intercept him there, just ahead.," Raclaw said explaining what he was sharing. Dirt or no dirt, the primitive creature could do very little to stop itself from giving away its own presence to the telepathic fur dragon.

After getting his breakfast and doing the dishes, Maverick returned to the main deck, using another set of stairs so that Shade on Angora won't see him. He wanted to go to the island a while to find Dahlia and didn't want to worry them. As he walked, he spotted Ilasi. She seemed very busy right now, but he still decided it was polite to greet her.
"Hey beauty. Good morning." Maverick said politely, finally able to control his stammering and blushing, even if there were still a few hints of it.

Quote: Spyroconvexity

“Hey you better get that fungus looked at. I don’t want you getting infected. Better tell Angora that as well.”

Maverick had left before hearing him, so right now, Angora didn't know about her infection. She waited for Shade to eat so she could brush his teeth and show off to the sailors nearby that she wasn't afraid of him, and that his lousy reputation was unfair and overrated.

Latnok continued to dig and dig, with the cattlejack seemingly unaware of the group's intended interception. A bit of shifting dirt later, the group was right above the intended path. Now all that was left to do was wait...
...and wait they did. The cattlejack was completely unsuspecting. As it passed right under, Latnok broke the last of the ground separating them from it, giving him and Raclaw the opportunity to get the jump on the creature while Chester would be in relative safety. And jump he did - as Latnok jumped, he brought his axe down with him, injuring the creature (which could best be described as a combination of a mole and a badger, with the size of a bear) and causing it to shriek and flail wildly. In its flailing, it knocked Latnok away and into one of the walls, with him being too close to effectively fend the blow. Latnok quickly got back on his feet...

As Latnok and his team fought the beast, there was a loud, deep bellow coming from behind the cattlejacker. Suddenly, one of the burrowing animal's back paws was gored by an unknown, horned creature, which them stormed off to the direction of the trio. It almost trampled poor little Chester and went inches away from tackling Latnok after he got back to his feet, but the creature purposely avoided them. It was... a dirt buffalo. Couldn't be, could it? The poor creature was limping and rather bloodied from the back side, but fortunately, it's injuries weren't life threatening. This particular buffalo's skin was sturdy and hairy, much stronger than cattle animals like cows or goats. After running from the group, the terrified animal ran away using the tunnels recently dug by the trio, leaving them behind to search for the exit...

As the ground broke-- Raclaw jumped onto the creature, while Chester was able to land safely on the ground. Upon landing on the Cattlejack and watching Latnok be knocked away, Raclaw was able to jab his tail spike into the wound caused by the Guardian's axe and expand it. With the spikes jabbing into the sides of the open wound, Raclaw was able to stay on top of the creature when...Quote: Felines

Suddenly, one of the burrowing animal's back paws was gored by an unknown, horned creature, which them stormed off to the direction of the trio. It almost trampled poor little Chester and went inches away from tackling Latnok after he got back to his feet, but the creature purposely avoided them. It was... a dirt buffalo. Couldn't be, could it? The poor creature was limping and rather bloodied from the back side, but fortunately, it's injuries weren't life threatening. This particular buffalo's skin was sturdy and hairy, much stronger than cattle animals like cows or goats. After running from the group, the terrified animal ran away using the tunnels recently dug by the trio, leaving them behind to search for the exit...

Chester almost squealed upon being almost trampled, quickly trying to move out of the way of the bloodied buffalo. This turn of events only led the Cattlejack to flail even more, causing it to knockout some of the tunnel's supports and resulting in an ongoing collapse of the trio's entry tunnel. As the dirt began to fill in and fall on of the fur dragon, he was able to keep his grasp-- his tail spike keep him grappled to the creature. The Cattlejack began to scurry to run in the opposite direction of Latnok and Raclaw started to breath fire into the back of its 'head' and 'neck' in hope of stopping the creature once and for all. As the dirt continued to pour in, the tunnel itself started to collapse and could quickly separate the team unless something was done.

Latnok quickly began to force his way through the dirt amidst all the chaos, in his effort to stay connected to the rest of the team - it wouldn't be as easy as he had hoped, however. The ground began to rumble - but not because of the creature they were currently facing. With his foresight, he jumped out of the way in time as the ground below him broke - and another cattlejacker, noticeably bigger than the one they were already engaged with, came between them, shrieking harshly.
"Of course," Latnok said, annoyed. "Its mate is here. Well, come on, there's a new technique I've made that I've been meaning to practice." As the tunnel network began to pour more dirt in, Latnok resigned himself to having to connect with everyone else after his current engagement. He really wish he brought a spear...

Quote:

After getting his breakfast and doing the dishes, Maverick returned to the main deck, using another set of stairs so that Shade on Angora won't see him. He wanted to go to the island a while to find Dahlia and didn't want to worry them. As he walked, he spotted Ilasi. She seemed very busy right now, but he still decided it was polite to greet her.
"Hey beauty. Good morning." Maverick said politely, finally able to control his stammering and blushing, even if there were still a few hints of it.

Maverick's rather bold compliment caught Ilasi completely off guard. Now it was her turn to begin blushing and stammering, as she tried to figure out how to return the greeting. "Oh, uh... hello, uh, Maverick... nothing much, just... you know, earning my keep. Nice, uh, weather today." Nice weather? Seriously? That's the best I could come up with? Ilasi thought, as she began to look down, being much too embarrassed to keep eye contact after saying that.

As the tunnel continued to collapse, Chester quickly found himself between Latnok and Raclaw. The little Beagle rapidly changed glances as his two favorite people were quickly becoming separated. With little time to spare, the little dog had to do something. "Chester-- run! Follow the sound of my voice! Follow.. follow the light!," Raclaw desperately barked not wanting harm to fall to his his furry pal and not wanting the little Chester to get trapped in-between due to his indecision. Chester's little legs began to move, as Raclaw uttered a command in his mind. "Collar-- Light!," he urged as his collar began to glow and the little Beagle quickly followed. Still on top of the smaller Cattlejacker, Raclaw degan to dig his claws into the beast's hide in a meager attempt to slow it down. Hanging on on best as he could, he continued with the fire and repeatedly retracted and expanded the spikes on the artifact-- lifting his tail and sending it down again rapidly expanding the open wound on the creature's backside.

As the little Chester began to finally catch up, Raclaw lifted his tail once again and lowered it further to the ground-- urging the Beagle to grab ahold and climb on his back. "Climb up-- now! I'll keep you safe!," he urged as Chester complied. "But what about Latnok? We-- we were separated!," Chester barked. "Don't worry-- I have an idea. No matter what happens, he will find us again.," Raclaw barked back as he 'spoke' another command into the collar. "Collar-- Reveal!," he shouted into his mind as the collar would soon do its thing-- assumedly helping Latnok to locate him should he not otherwise be distracted. Once Chester was safely secure on his back and using the back of his collar to help prevent himself from falling off-- Raclaw resumed the continued attacks as the Cattlejacker panicked.

Quote: A Guy

Maverick's rather bold compliment caught Ilasi completely off guard. Now it was her turn to begin blushing and stammering, as she tried to figure out how to return the greeting. "Oh, uh... hello, uh, Maverick... nothing much, just... you know, earning my keep. Nice, uh, weather today." Nice weather? Seriously? That's the best I could come up with? Ilasi thought, as she began to look down, being much too embarrassed to keep eye contact after saying that.

"Yeah, nice. Sure beats the storm we braced." Maverick said jokingly, avoiding eye contact with her too to avoid embarrassing her further.
"Well, you seem busy, so I'll leave now. I'll be on the island looking for Dahlia. Released her to stretch her legs a little, you know? And afterwards I'm going to give this little girl a tour of the ship. Sweet little gal let me tell you. Wait 'till you meet the cute niña. I can help you after that if you want, if you're still busy by that time." Maverick offered sweetly, returning to his old self, blushing a little when speaking but at least leaving behind the stammering. He was getting quite use to this new life now that the Guardians were being a little more flexible with them and Angora was finally being more polite and controlling of her temper. Even though he still had some deep feelings for Ilasi, he still believed he missed his chances with her, but he wanted to pursue a friendship nonetheless.

As Raclaw continued to pierce, hack, and burn the cattlejacker, it shrieked out, slowing down. Eventually, realizing that it had no hope of escaping its assailant, it instead rolled over and began thrashing, in a last ditch effort to crush Raclaw.

Though much of the tunnel had collapsed, separating Latnok from the others, the area Latnok was now in was stable - at least for the moment. Once the creature was facing him, he shot a force bolt, aiming for its eye - the skin would be too thick for it to do much there. The creature reactively shifted its head, and the force bolt hit it in the temple instead. This didn't appear to do much, except anger the creature, who began charging at Latnok. Hmm, I have an idea... As Latnok was thinking, he could feel a presence - and somehow, he was able to know exactly who it was. Raclaw. Not only did he know who it was, he knew where Raclaw was. The Reveal command. Latnok would be able to reconnect with the others later; he had bigger problems to deal with right now.

"Well... thank you, Maverick. I appreciate it," Ilasi said, just a little more firmly. Though she wasn't exactly sure how Maverick would be able to help her in the tasks she typically performed, his offer was, at the very least, appreciated.
Ilasi felt rather conflicted about Maverick. Though she still had at least some feelings for him, she also had to consider his dedication to Angora - who abhorred her - and the fact that she would never be more than secondary as long as that was the case. Was there any possible solution to that?

Leoquin began slithering his way across the gangplank, with the box in hand. Noticing Ilasi talking with Maverick, he decided that maybe something other than that pathetic excuse for a man - at least if the rumors were true - was worth her attention right now. The current rumor about him making the runs was that he was a pirate, but, in his cowardice, sold out his crew, and watched as they killed his former comrades while he got off completely free.
"Hey, Ilasi - found this in one of the ships. Why don't we take a look at it?" Leoquin proposed to Ilasi.
Ilasi was glad to have some excuse to not have to wallow in her embarrassment facing Maverick right now after being taken aback by his greeting. "I'd love to," she said.
The box was locked - but it was nothing which couldn't be pried off. Leoquin came prepared for such a circumstance, applying a metal bar between the lock, twisting it until the lock broke. Upon opening the box, they discovered a green orb - seemingly translucent and luminescent, but it was hard to tell with current lighting. What did Leoquin happen across? Perhaps someone very knowledgeable about magic would know...

Maverick managed to glance at the orb as he made his way to the gangplank, being done talking. He was already set on leaving, but Leoquin's arrival made him leave faster.
"I'll return soon. And good morning to you too Leoquin." Maverick said politely after noticing the mermen's scowl and cold shoulder. He didn't like him very much, but that wasn't going to stop him from trying to have a civilized relationship with him. Maverick even bothered to remember his name, and no matter how mean the mermen was to him or his family, he wasn't going to let him spoil his good mood.

Further away on the main deck, Angora was waiting for Shade to finish off his meal. He was taking a while, probably to flavor the meat since he received nothing but fish lately, or maybe he was just prolonging his time to brush. One way or the other, he wasn't going to escape that cleaning.

Quote: A Guy

As Raclaw continued to pierce, hack, and burn the cattlejacker, it shrieked out, slowing down. Eventually, realizing that it had no hope of escaping its assailant, it instead rolled over and began thrashing, in a last ditch effort to crush Raclaw.

Though much of the tunnel had collapsed, separating Latnok from the others, the area Latnok was now in was stable - at least for the moment. Once the creature was facing him, he shot a force bolt, aiming for its eye - the skin would be too thick for it to do much there. The creature reactively shifted its head, and the force bolt hit it in the temple instead. This didn't appear to do much, except anger the creature, who began charging at Latnok. Hmm, I have an idea... As Latnok was thinking, he could feel a presence - and somehow, he was able to know exactly who it was. Raclaw. Not only did he know who it was, he knew where Raclaw was. The Reveal command. Latnok would be able to reconnect with the others later; he had bigger problems to deal with right now.

Raclaw didn't know if the command had worked or not, but it didn't matter-- like Latnok, he had his own problems. As the cattlejack rolled over and began thrashing-- Raclaw quickly retracted his tailspike and and just barely managed to squeeze out from under the large creature. Chester held on his collar, using his paws to 'grasp' the collar to the best of his ability. Upon sliding out from under the creature; Raclaw was able to catch the creature in a moment of weakness. The Cattlejacker fully exposed its belly to Raclaw and, even though he knew very little of its anatomy, he figured that the belly had to be much softer than the rest of its body-- and more vital to any potential attack. Changing his tails 'spikes' to a single downward facing 'spike' and elongating it, he managed to form a spear and jabbed it down to where he would expect the creature's heart to be. The creature shrieked in pain and slowly stopped moving, although Raclaw's job wasn't done yet. Among the chaos, Raclaw had hit the sides of the tunnel and had caused his own formerly stable section to become slightly unstable. The shriek would only make it worse and the tunnel was already beginning to collapse on top of him-- and the poor Chester holding on for dear life. The fallen creature was blocking the only open exit and the tunnel behind them had already collapsed. Having an idea, Raclaw inverted the spear-like spike causing it to instead face upwards. From there, he caused a moderately sized flat 'table' surface to form on top of the spear to hopefully stabilize the tunnel segment until help could arrive. It worked, at least for the time being. "Chester-- it'll be alright. Just stay calm and help will arrive at any moment.," he ensured the little Beagle as the two awaited their fate.

As the creature charged at Latnok, he braced himself - all he had to do was dodge the blow. With intense focus on his foresight, he saw the claw swipe coming, and sidestepped to his right in preparation for the next step...
As the creature raised a paw and performed a rather reckless swipe, Latnok sidestepped once again to avoid it - however, this time, after finishing the sidestep, he changed his grip on his axe to a two-handed grip, as he spun on his heel. Quick, in-the-moment, reactive - that was the basis of force magic. Latnok focused intensely on the fight in the moment, and bringing every bit of strength, both physical and magical, to bear as he used the momentum from his rotation to increase his force. As he came full circle, he dropped his entire body down as he swung wildly downward, feeling the pressure from all of the pent-up force he was now unleashing.
The blow hit home; as it hit the creature, the fracturing - or, more accurately, the pulverizing - of bones, not just at the point of contact of the axe, but also at the entire general area of the attack, as a huge wedge was created in the creature's body at the initial point of contact. Latnok couldn't stop himself - he brought the axe all the way into the ground, and it rumbled violently. Gods, that was probably not the best time to field test that move... perhaps I didn't think this all the way through... Latnok thought - the area around him was collapsing. The blow had used most of his strength - it would be a struggle to get out of here. At the moment, all he could do was keep moving enough ground to prevent himself from becoming completely buried, suffocating.

"We're busy right now, don't bother us," Leoquin said abrasively to Maverick.
"Come on now, Leoquin, you should be a little nicer to him," Ilasi suggested. She detested the conflict in the group; it would seem that the very thing she feared by having Angora come had manifested, though it involved more than just Angora.
"Nice to him? After that sarcasm? Like hell," Leoquin said, rejecting the suggestion. "Craven cries for world peace because he's too scared to even fight, and he has the nerve to think he can talk to a superior like that..."
Ilasi didn't know what to say at the moment. It was clear that Leoquin's seemingly off-hand comment about Maverick fighting was actually a significant thought of his. Could she deal with the situation in a way that made everyone happy?

Maverick didn't even bothered correcting Leoquin. He did wanted to fig yesterday, but Sere didn't let him. He knew he would have to tolerate Leoquin's antagonism for as long as it was needed. Did he was this way to him and Angora so they could act up and have an excuse to banish them? Leoquin did seemed capable of something so cold, so he was going to make sure his brash insults didn't let him get the better of him. Maverick raised his hand and waved in goodbye at the duo, adopting a very gloomy demeanor after he turned his back again. It was clear that those two were getting along very nicely, which just cemented Maverick's idea of his missed chance with Ilasi.

His sorrow didn't lasted very long, for at that very moment, Alya came from behind a building and gave him a big hug.
"Maverick, you're here! Oh goodie goodie! I told my parents you would come back to give me the tour, but I just couldn't wait. Can we now?" Alya asked, desperate to finally see the big ship for herself, but Maverick had a more important matter at the moment.
"I will little lady. I promise. But I'm searching for someone right now. I can give you the tour later." Maverick assured, Alya always managing to lift his mood. She was like an angel sent to him and Angora to make the ordeal less hard on them.
"Oh, well I can help you search. I already did my morning chores earlier so I could come." the little girl said ecstatically, really liking Maverick. She went with him without hesitation when he said whom he was searching for. Alya knew dirt buffalos were very hard to domesticate, so the fact that he had one as a mount made him even cooler.

Quote: A Guy

As the creature charged at Latnok, he braced himself - all he had to do was dodge the blow. With intense focus on his foresight, he saw the claw swipe coming, and sidestepped to his right in preparation for the next step...
As the creature raised a paw and performed a rather reckless swipe, Latnok sidestepped once again to avoid it - however, this time, after finishing the sidestep, he changed his grip on his axe to a two-handed grip, as he spun on his heel. Quick, in-the-moment, reactive - that was the basis of force magic. Latnok focused intensely on the fight in the moment, and bringing every bit of strength, both physical and magical, to bear as he used the momentum from his rotation to increase his force. As he came full circle, he dropped his entire body down as he swung wildly downward, feeling the pressure from all of the pent-up force he was now unleashing.
The blow hit home; as it hit the creature, the fracturing - or, more accurately, the pulverizing - of bones, not just at the point of contact of the axe, but also at the entire general area of the attack, as a huge wedge was created in the creature's body at the initial point of contact. Latnok couldn't stop himself - he brought the axe all the way into the ground, and it rumbled violently. Gods, that was probably not the best time to field test that move... perhaps I didn't think this all the way through... Latnok thought - the area around him was collapsing. The blow had used most of his strength - it would be a struggle to get out of here. At the moment, all he could do was keep moving enough ground to prevent himself from becoming completely buried, suffocating.

As Raclaw's tunnel segment somewhat stabilized, he realised that that the air was running thin-- and that it was only a matter of time until the two would suffocate. "Of course.. the air. Chester-- we need to get out of here and find Latnok.," he barked looking at Chester and glancing towards the collapsed tunnel that had separated them from Latnok. He lacked the Guardian magic and couldn't earth shift like Latnok, but they had to do something. "Come on-- help me dig. Assuming he is doing the same, he ought to meet in the middle and should be able to get out of here with his help.," Raclaw explained as his furry pal jumped off and started to dig into the tunnel wall. Raclaw did the same, using his right wing to protect Chester from any falling debris and keeping his tail 'table' pressed up against the tunnel ceiling. He encouraged the little Beagle to keep as digging and ensured him of theirs-- and Latnok's survival.

After his exertion, Latnok just wanted to lie in place and rest - not forever, he told himself, just for a few minutes. But he couldn't afford to do that. He knew that the supply of breathable air was finite. He had to get up. But where would he go? What direction to dig?
There. He remembered that presence. He would have to dig towards Raclaw. He would get out. After all, this would be a pretty embarrassing way to die. Finding every bit of strength he could muster, he once again focused the earth digging spell - pain surged through his arms as he dug, but he had to keep moving. He had to...
Soon, he could feel it - just on the other side of some earth, he would be able to meet Raclaw. With a push, he broke the dirt, revealing Raclaw and Chester.
"Oh, hey guys... yeah, I might have picked the wrong time to try something out..." Latnok admitted. "But... we need to get out of here. I can... get us to the nearest air pocket. Buy us some time. We'll... we'll... see how things go from there."

By that point-- Raclaw, Latnok, and Chester were all very tired from the digging. "It's-- it's alright. You did what you had to-- let's just.. let's just get out of here.," the fur dragon said between breaths. As he spoke, his collar glowed and an elongated spike protruding from his tail was being used to help hold the ceiling up. It was obvious that the furry duo had gotten rather creative in their approach, Raclaw in particular. Chester offered a a few tired-but-happy barks glad to see that Latnok was still alive. Letting Latnok do his thing with the Guardian magic, Raclaw retracted the artifact 'table' and followed closely behind alongside Chester.

There could be no stopping. Latnok focused the Earth Sense spell, revealing a hollow point in the dirt to him. With a destination in mind now, he began frantically digging, letting adrenaline take over and shrugging off the pain for now. The path they were taking at the moment was completely different - they just had to keep moving up, however, and they would eventually get somewhere.
Though the air became thinner, the group managed to prevail - they had reached the next air pocket, a chamber with about as much space as the room they had at the Easy Eyrie. How Latnok wished they were there now... he couldn't show that, however. He had to keep a straight face. Show as little weakness as possible.
"We can rest here, for a bit," he said, as he sat down. Perhaps some meditation would help right now.

'Finally...,' Raclaw thought as the group managed to dig their way into a new chamber. The large space did indeed match the dimensions of their room at the Easy Eyrie, although this 'room' was anything but easy and was very sparse in its creature comforts. As soon as they were all safely in the chamber, Raclaw laid down almost on his side with the little Chester lying down next to him. "I.. I don't know about you, but I had a fun time.. playing Ride the Cattlejacker. Fortunately, the collar and the artifact.. came in handy.," Raclaw said half-jokily with a smile and motioning towards the still glowing collar. Chester barked and tried to fill in Latnok on the details-- a long series of barks that was loosely translated by Raclaw between breaths. He reverted the artifact to its spike form, just in case they would need it again. Back on the main ship, Risar kept the prisoners busy blissfully unaware of everything his shipmates were currently going through.

"Well..." Latnok began, "I used a new technique I've made. I call it... 'Pulverize.' Pretty simple. Build up as much momentum as you can, focus on drawing out every bit of energy out of yourself as you can, and strike... all in one move. Devastating effects. Risky, though. Leaves me exhausted. I can break my back if I do it wrong. Godfather Sere would probably not approve of me using something like that. But... you know, we Guardians are always looking for ways to become more powerful. I have to do my part, you know?" Latnok reached into his bag, and after some fishing, found what he was looking for - some diluted dragon brew. Without hesitation, he began chugging the vial, downing its contents in seconds. His pain and exhaustion didn't go away - rather, he now felt as if they would not inhibit him from doing what he needed to do. Still, a bit of rest right now wouldn't hurt.
"Just let me know when you guys want to leave..." Latnok said. "I'll get us out of here."