RP:How to Slain your Dragon
Location: The Jolly Roger, Empty Wilderness
Summary: An unexpected visit from a certain snack happy teenager and a well timed arrival from the resident tattoo artist at the Jolly Roger turns into a dragon hunt in the Rynvale Wilderness.
Leoxander slowed his pace as Loravelle successfully escaped the beast on the beach to the warehouse doors. He’d let her win, of course, no way the mouse could outrun him as true wolf again. While waiting for her to get those doors open (they were rarely locked when he was present on the island), his large muzzle turned from one shoulder to the other, gold bled eyes inspecting the empty wharf and the rugged road that passed between the sand and the Jolly Roger. Soon after, he was shaking away the wariness as easily as he shook some of the fur out of his tawny coat, the seemingly blank medallion and crow ring on a silver chain, buried in chest fur, clattering quietly
Loravelle adds another bruise to her collection by elbowing one of the heavy doors open enough for both of them to squeeze through. She wants to complain about her weak noodle arms, but doesn't. The mouse is in too good of a mood for that. Instead she busies herself with shutting the door behind them while presumably, Leo transforms from wolf to man again somewhere in the Jolly Roger. From there, she isn't really sure what to do next while rubbing her elbow. She's already cleaned the place once...Maybe it needs to be cleaned again? “Do you still want that rum?” She calls out, whether tawny-furred wolf or tawny-haired man is within view or not. She pulls the flask free from her pocket either way.
Shishi ’s daughter enters The Jolly Roger at her own risk. The blonde half-elf is dressed in dark colors as is typical for her. Her hair is draped over the front of the left shoulder atop a black cloak that appears to have thin, white enoki mushrooms growing out of the back of it. They are the flavorful physical manifestation of an enchantment the girl has placed on the garment that renders her virtually invisible to undead creatures while she wears it. By sheer coincidence she arrives a few minutes after Leoxander and Loravelle, just late enough that she wasn’t in line of sight when the wolfman scanned the beach and road before moving inside the converted warehouse. It’s unclear what exactly Orange was expecting to find here, but it is clear that she wasn’t expecting to run into the former servant girl. The teenage witch raises a brow and puffs out her cheek slightly at the ‘mouse(?)’ before asking, “You work here or something?” seemingly ignoring Leoxander completely.
“Yeah…” She’d hear Leo’s voice after a while, just before Orange made her entrance, from beyond the doorway to the kitchen and storage area behind the bar. Obviously the rogue had a locker or some means within those warehouse walls of keeping his belongings secure, and it just so happened his compound bow and quiver of crow-feather broadhead arrows had been stashed there, too. The rogue still had sand in his hair and some dirt smeared on his arms and face, but he was dressed in simple black articles of a short sleeved shirt and loose leather pants, barefoot and lacking a bandana, face rugged from several days without a shave. He looked as though he’d just rolled out of bed and smelled like the forest and shoreline and all the earthy aroma that came with that. Although he intended to look toward Lora, share some controlled excitement about the fact he had overcome a major obstacle in his existence, Leo abruptly stopped in the doorless frame and placed his weapon on the end of the bar counter. Blue eyes rimmed faintly on the outside with a stubborn bronze reluctant to fade fixed upon the blonde, Blue’s daughter. Who he had never seen occupying Rynvale before.
Loravelle jumps at the sight of Orange because surely she wouldn't be wandering around alone without a parent, and the only parent for this girl that she knows of is Blue, and well... It takes her a second to answer, half expecting that vampire to wander in too. She even gets up on tip-toes to peek behind the blonde half-elf to check, then looks toward Leo, clearly alarmed. Why does he have his bow out? She's a child. ...Blue's child. That might mean something more significant than Lora is aware of. Clearing her throat in effort to try to not sound so nervous (she fails miserably at this), she replies to Orange. “...K-kind of..” This is so embarrassing, being skittish around a kid over their scary father. He did technically save her life though, so... Best be nice. “C-can I get you anything?” She stammers, fidgeting with the sleeve of her bright yellow robes. Maybe Leo had more of that raspberry drink he gave her the first time she visited stowed away behind the bar, and her eyes look his way. Please help. She's at a loss, here.
Shishi ’s daughter’s oceanic blue eyes shift towards Leoxander and the bow he set on the countertop. It is very subtle, but she does react; the fingers of her left hand tensing with the tips of her thumb and middle finger pressing against each other. When Loravelle’s meek response comes, Leralynn prys her eyes off of the captain and returns them to Lora. “Good. Yeah. I want to buy some ink.” She pauses for a beat before clarifying, “I mean… just ink. Not like a tattoo. You know?” She catches the girl watching the door and puts on a little smirk, “Blue’s not here. Don’t worry.” Condescending, for sure.
Leo treated his weapons like a Visa. He was very rarely unarmed in some way, and had gone so far to place the compound bow down, though the quiver was nudged off his shoulders to inspect and count what ammo was available, making a mental note to forage for fletching supplies on the trek north. Noticing Loravelle’s behavior and having a reasonable suspicion of its cause, he moved behind the bar at her side, seeking out her flask or any rum she might have located, possibly taking over the task entirely to pour himself a drink a cut glass tumbler. A good deal more than a shot’s worth. “You came all the way out here for ink?” Leo wasn’t buying it, though he was sure there were vials of different pigments on hand in the drawers of a table set in a back corner with a raised, armless ‘lounge’ seat to fit most of an average body. “If you’re here about the ship, today’s not the day, kid…” Ironically, it was the land calling out to him, due to the fact he had reunited with forest territory as a wolf and his boots and belongings were still out there to track down. He set the quiver down and picked up his glass for a long drink. Somehow raspberry flavored spring water didn’t seem like Orange’s choice of beverage, but he’d wait for a request rather than assume.
Shishi ’s daughter puffs out her cheeks in a frustrated pout as Leo all but sees through her secondary motivation for being on the island. She has the reasoning that she used to convince herself that she needed to come out here prepared however, so she is quick to answer his skepticism with it, “Inks colored with chromatic dragon scales are useful magic components. With the dragon lands on the island, I figured this was the best place to find them.” She folds her arms under her chest, taking up a defensive stance after she’s been so easily exposed. She tries to bite her tongue, but curiosity gets the better of The Orange Witch and she can’t help but ask, “Why not today anyway?”
Loravelle blinks. Ink? The words 'don't worry' just make her worry a bit more, but Leo moving to her side is some much-need relief. She had never really wandered over to where the tattooing equipment is, uncertain if that particular corner of the warehouse is deemed off limits to her. Handing Leo the flask of rum in her hands, she pats her pockets for anything else that might be useful in them. Ah! That stick of gum Lanara gave her. ...Kids like snacks. Usually. Teenagers too. She's never had a piece of gum before, but hands it over to Orange as a nonverbal way to say that she's sorry for being spooked. From there, Lora will make herself a little bit scarce but still within sight of Leo and Orange. There's probably some dust on a counter top she can clean and keep an ear open.
Leo typically might have settled an impatient stare on the nearly adult teenager, but Orange had caught him on one of his better days, and having that rum in hand was another boost to his mood. He motioned with that hand holding the glass as if the dragons were right outside that building. “The less of those damn things the better, though they ain’t exactly as friendly as I am.” Just a little sarcasm bleeding into that statement. Finishing off his first drink, the empty tumbler was set down on the bar surface, watching the grey eyed woman make her peace offering. “I-... we… got things to do. Jus’ so happens we’re headed passed the nests if you wanna trail us that far.” The pirate didn’t mention anything about helping her acquire such things, though he did move out from behind the counter toward that particular corner. “My first mate is likely on a hunt and the rest are scattered in the wind.” Maybe Leo was as disappointed as Orange that those sails weren’t harboring a catch of wind and slicing through the waves, but to say his plate was just as full, lately, would be an understatement.
Shishi ’s daughter isn’t very familiar with gum herself, so she looks at the stick skeptically, sniffing it and raises a brow before biting it in half, chewing while making a face, and then popping the remaining half into her mouth, “What the heck…” -snap, pop-, “... is this?” Looking back to Leo, Leralynn lets out a (now flavored) huff, she really has no interest in doing any dragon hunting herself, especially without The Blue Demon backing her up. Her tool of choice on this trip was supposed to be coin. She probably doesn’t have the knowledge to turn scales into ink anyway, but she doesn’t let any of this on, and simply responds, “Aye. I can come along…” the words coming out between chewing gum snaps again.
Loravelle feels the color start to drain from her face. They're going somewhere past dragon nests? Dragon nests. The urge to 'accidentally' knock something over or shatter a glass to stall for time is very, very strong. But Leo looks to be in such a good mood, and it is his island...They'll be safe. She can tough it out. ...Might wanna swap her flip-flops for some more practical shoes, though. “It's called gum,” she replies to Leralynn, as if she knows what she's talking about. “I think it's like candy.” Disappearing behind the bar momentarily to find a stash of spare clothes Leo kept for her there, she swaps flip flops for socks and a pair of boots that she quickly laces. They look out of place with her robes, but they'll be hidden most of the time so it isn't an issue. Returning to Leo's side, she quietly announces, “Ready.” Not really ready, but about as ready as she can be.
Leoxander retrieved two square vials of ink, one a deep ocean blue and the other, naturally black, because it was the majority in his old stock. As the ink had been treated to be preserved once stitched into skin, it hadn't dried up just yet. Again, his decent mood outweighed the urge to be annoyed by the popping and smacking of gum, but he might just have to get some revenge against Lanara for introducing the stuff not only to his new partner, but half the rogues present in the den that evening. What was worse than an assertive and self-sure teenager? One with gum, he discovered that day. His glance after Loravelle returned to Orange while the former maidservant laced up footwear more appropriate for thick forest terrain. “Why not.” He wasn’t given much choice in the matter, and he had mentioned they were going that direction, which was an unintentional invitation, like it or not. Leo took the time to open a bottle half drained off the shelf to refill the flask, tucking it into the back of his pants part way despite that it belonged to Lora. “Last call, then.” In case the girl wanted something from the bar before they departed. He really was in an approachable mood, today.
Shishi ’s daughter eyes those two bottles of ink and makes a motion that indicates that she just got here, so she’s already in her travel gear and ready to head out whenever. Maybe there is something inherent to being a teenager that gives you a natural ability to be obnoxious with gum, because Leralynn is doing it perfectly. Leo makes last call and Orange eyes Loravelle inquisitively, wondering if she could get the scaredy cat to serve her some rum, but she’s not really interested in drinking all that much, so doesn’t make any moves to accomplish it. She shifts her shoulders up and down, ruffling the enoki on the back of her cloak before turning slightly to clear the way to the exit, prepared to follow the two others out of the warehouse.
Loravelle wonders if there's anything else she should bring along, but figures Leo will tell her if she missed something. Watching him wander off for bottles of ink has her itching to ask for a tattoo, again, but she bites her tongue. A thousand times asking is probably enough. Besides, now she has another thing to get worried over. What if Leralynn gets hurt while they're traveling? She's a teenager, still a child... And she wasn't about to let a kid get hurt. Frowning, Lora decides that maybe she'll hang back a little to keep an eye on Orange, just in case as they head out the door. “How have you been since...” Her father eating Lora's former master was over a year ago. That's a pretty long time. She tries to be vague since that whole incident was uncomfortable from start to finish. “...Since Frostmaw?”
Leo fully intended to head out that door, and once he had his compound bow and quiver over shoulder and a hunting blade at his hip, the barefoot rogue moved to open one of the metal doors to hold it thus for the two to pass by before he secured it closed, if not locked. Lita was just across the street. Mahri was there somewhere in the vicinity, or he’d possibly scent her on the path nearer the thicket. A scratch through messy blonde given with his makeshift bandaged left hand and he motioned forward, heading down the street alongside the shoreline, though rather than veer onto the docks, he continued toward the heart of a once flourishing port side city that now held empty streets and a parched fountain void of water and tarnished by weather. As Lora had already initiated some casual conversation with the girl, Leo waited his turn to present a question of his own. “That your skill set, sprat? Magic?” Besides snacking, the pirate didn’t know much of her strengths and weaknesses.
Shishi and Leralynn have a different definition of the words ‘since Frostmaw’ than Loravelle. The question evokes the image of her fellow Living Dead Girl getting ripped into another dimension mere seconds after having her heart removed from her body. Again, the blonde half-elf raises her brow, wondering if this is anything more than an attempt at small talk by the former servant girl. “Fine, I guess…” She glances down and to the side towards the mushrooms on the back of her shoulder, a reminder of the missing Necrobotanist, “...Trying to find a way to reach Kanna. You know?” Orange steps out of the Jolly Roger and moves down the road with the pair, answering Leoxander’s question, “Aye. Necromancy mostly.” The branch of magic is spoken proudly. Of course she is following in her idol; their former clan leader’s footsteps. As usual she has her small candle holder hanging off her hip and her satchel that typically holds magical components on her person. A keen eye will also notice a long lump beneath the cloak on her back, likely the telescoping shovel she’s so often seen with.
Loravelle didn't need to know that the kid knew how to use magic. Now she's right up there on the same level of terrifying as her father, but that fearful expression on her face doesn't stay for long. Mention of Kanna has her frowning, too. She didn't know the necrobotanist, but admired her. “I'm sorry...” Lora didn't know they were friends? She's guessing friends. “She gave me flowers a few times. I dried them out and keep them at home.” If only they were in Gualon and Lora could hurry home to bring the girl some of them. Maybe it might cheer her up a little. Her solemn expression shifts a little toward discomfort at the notion of necromancy, but now really wasn't the time to let herself get worked up and scared. Deep breaths. The candle holder captures Lora's attention then, as they follow behind the pirate. “What's that for?”
Leo wasn’t oblivious of the spores growing on her cloak. He knew well enough who performed spell weaving like that, or whatever the source of that ability was. But he decided not to bring it up. Even the rogue had been taken aback by the outcome of the semi-finals and the finale. A memory from the year before had often crossed his mind since, making him wonder why Shishi hadn’t come to fatal force in their own bout, especially with Leo resorting to dragon’s blood for the added effect. Jaw tense, he walked a step ahead of Leralynn and Loravelle, listening more than speaking. Whether he’d heard it directly from Shishi’s daughter or just had valid guesswork, he suspected Tenebrae’s influence, which would have only been more obvious if she had answered with ‘Sin-Eating’. Unlike Lora, he needed to know what, rather than who, was in their company for part of the trip, and necromancer wasn’t his most favored answer. Still, he continued to lead the way north until stone inlaid streets missing pieces here or there cut into a rougher path of wilderness, and it was here he paused briefly to make an adjustment to the tension in his bow, dividing his attention between that task and the wall of foliage ahead.
Shishi ’s daughter lets out a “Gwah~! Lucky~!” regarding a flower gift from Kanna. When asked about the candle holder, Leralynn gives the smart alec answer first, “Holding a candle…” She smirks and her features darken before she teases, “... and to speak with the dead. Is there anyone who’s gone you’d like to say anything to? Maybe that old man?” She spares a glance up a head at Leo to see if he has any reaction to her trying to disturb Loravelle. Invoking the title of ‘sin-eater’ probably would have been an easier path to scaring the former servant, but Orange picks her spots carefully when talking about that aspect of her inheritance from the Dark Queen…
Lita appeared from the south.
Loravelle falls into old habits – servant mode, offering her arm for Leralynn to hold onto once they seem to be leaving civilization and into wilderness, just in case the ground is uneven and she might need help walking through it. “I can share if you want,” the flowers, she means. Flowers, alive or dried and dead or silly floral hair combs, they were all special. That comment about speaking to Mister Bradley again has her eyes widening with fear again, but she holds her tongue and shakes her head, not dropping her arm if Leralynn did take it or not. Looking ahead with Leo in view helps keep her nerves somewhat under control. At least enough to murmur, “It might be nice to talk to my grandmother sometime. I miss her. She didn't make it on the ship over here.”
He did in fact have a look for Orange when she revealed the purpose of the candlestick and went so far as to mention Loravelle’s deceased master. Safe to say he was aware of how the traumatic situation had affected her. “No.” Protective, a bit possessive, he answered for Lora sternly while she declined the offer with her body language, though he didn’t object to the murmur wolf-sharp ears caught. “Anytime you’re ready, ladies…” Patience still intact but stretched, he used the bow gripped in hand to push aside some leaves and branches to create something of a doorway into the forest that would become more dense, humid and green before any clearings offered reprieve from a cautious advantage of rough terrain and branches to duck. He was already starting to smell the reek of wyrm scales. Those haughty creatures had no reason to be nocturnal as most of the other wildlife did, soaking in what sun managed to filter through the tree canopy.
Leralynn raises a brow. She hasn’t tried a seance without a body before. This would be some nice summoning practice for her. “If you have something of hers that was important to her, I could probably make it happen. Orange has never been much of a fan of Loravelle’s as she didn’t appreciate the old man that she was indebted to throwing his life away to feed her father. The entire vampiric process seems to upset the half-elf teen so flaunting it like that never sat well with her. Now she’s perhaps softening on Lora though, finally taking her arm as they trek into the wilderness. She flinches just as they make contact because it is at that same time that Leo snaps out his ‘no’ towards her initial seance offer. Cheeks puff out in another of her family’s signature pouts before Leralynn steps forward with Loravelle in tow and moves through the threshold the lycan has created for them…
Lita has been delaying the inevitable conversation she needed to have with the pirate. She's got queations about a particular brand of magics and monsters and he might have more information than she does, or at least be able to point her in a useful direction. She's not sure where else to start. She's not keen on interrupting a fun outing, but her concerns may be time sensitive. Dressed in the usual black sundress, she's donned the same pair of knee high boots from the day prior. She's still limping a bit, favoring her right leg but working hard to hide it. The overcoat helps. She should have brought Lora's guitar and kite to return and kicks herself for not thinking of it. The trio aren't hard to come upon at the edge of the forest and she casts a sideways look at Leo. "What are we stalking today?" She asks quietly, seemingly indifferent to the fact that she's intruding entirely on whatever they're doing.
Loravelle jumps a little at that stern 'no' from Leo, shooting an apologetic look Leralynn's way immediately afterward. Before she can suggest something important that she might have back home that once belonged to her grandmother's Lora decides to cut the conversation short and hurry along before Leo gets impatient. She tries giving the girl a reassuring pat on the arm when she flinches, since she flinches too. It isn't very fun to do that, but before she can say anything, Lita appears. That perks Lora right back up, and she doesn't notice the limp thanks to her overcoat. “Hi Ace,” she greets.
Leoxander hadn’t noticed the limp the day before, not that he could have said anything about it, transformed. But as Lita’s approach drew his attention from where he held the ‘door’ for the two, he couldn’t miss it now, even if she did her best to conceal it. He was observant to such trivial things as stride and pace, not to mention that subtle emotion like a faint rustle of wind that he could sense all the more clearly now that the wolf was bonded, not bound. “Dragons, apparently.” A motion at the teenager he didn’t realize Lita might hardly see as she passed his position. Leo wasn’t too certain he’d actually follow through to help the demon’s daughter acquire a few scales, but there were other reasons for the journey. “An’ I left my boots out there somewhere.” That broken in, heavy tread footwear had been a gift over a decade ago, and he’d be hard pressed to be seen wearing anything else. “Mouse n’ I are lookin’ for a water source that ain’t sea or mud.” But he didn’t yet reveal where his run with Mahri had taken them, though the memory was so clear in his mind - not a blur of red behind the eyes of a lycanthrope who had to fight to escape in the past.
Shishi ’s daughter eyes Lita, repeating quietly the name, “Ace…” to herself. Have these two ever met before? If they have, it would have been several years prior and the half elven teen might be unrecognizable to the vampire even without the obscuring effect provided by her enoki covered cloak. “Just a few scales. Preferably blue and or green…” she clarifies that they needn’t get into a full dragon slaying quest to acquire what she wants. The girl is still interested in channeling Loravelle’s grandmother at some point in the future, but won’t press the issue at the moment as the pair has been distracted off the topic…
Lita spares a friendly smile for Lora. "Meant to tell you that Twing Twang and Maro are safe at the beach house." The guitar's name still felt strange to say but no judgement. "Dragon hunting, huh?" She quirks a brow at Leo but will keep comments to herself. She'd done enough dragin slaying of her own in her past. She tilts her head at the blur of colors emanating an unfamiliar voice but says nothing of the fact that she can barely make out the form of what she assumed is a person. She's not so fond of magic. She edges a step around Leo to put him between herself and the other two females. "Mind if I tag along?" She asks no one in particular. "Why blue or green specifically?"
Looking for a water source? Color Lora surprised. They were? ...For an estuary, eventually? She can't believe it. Something she mentioned in passing and thought might sound silly and they're off looking for it now. Now the mousy woman is trying to suppress a bright smile that wants to form, and refocuses on helping Orange along if she was still holding onto her arm. “Green? That's my favorite color.” She's grown pretty fond of the color blue too, but keeps that thought to herself and instead lets her gaze linger on Leo for a moment. “Thank you, Ace. I owe you for picking everything up...” Unaware that Orange looked like a blur to Lita, she continues on, keeping her eyes primarily on the ground to ensure she doesn't misstep and trip over a rock or something.
Leo had no reason to say no to Lita, but at that point… “Might as well.” He could have just thrown a howl up for pack or made a public announcement on the project at that point. Cobble stone had become yellow brick and they were picking up an assortment of characters along the way. Letting Leralynn answer her own question, though he had noticed the hint of confusion in Lita’s gaze toward the girl, he finally stepped after the party into the thick vegetation of the forest, most of the trees in that area aged oaks getting their new green with dried branches, thawed leaves and overgrown weeds spread along the forest floor. “Yer due to see plenty of it, out here.” He commented offhand to the mouse as he heard the energy pick up again in her tone. “We get far enough along you’d never think we’re on the same island as ogres an’ a poisoned swamp.” Whether he returned to the lead or everyone just generally continued forward, he wasn’t so proper as to check back on either of the three. Even Lora would have to make her way along without being coddled by the barefoot pirate. He would, however, be so kind as to turn, grab, and throw his hunting knife at arrow speed and accuracy to split through the center of a startled serpent just below the hood that flattened when Lora and Orange stepped too close. The book keeper’s scent was decisively human without the smell of death or nature. Leo only moved to decapitate and retrieve the snake and his blade, pulling a decaying bit of fallen log over the separated body part before he stood with a look toward his timid partner. “Ever tried snake?” He wondered if she might manage to pale with her skin already so fair.
Shishi ’s daughter bobs her head at the question. “Those seem like the most fun. I’ve done fire and ice already. Time to switch it up. You know?” Leralynn doesn’t seem to notice she’s in the presence of a vampire now, so she too is oblivious to the fact that Lita can’t see her well. The Ernest countermeasures having this unintended side effect is a necessary evil, apparently. Orange isn’t nearly as big a fan of green as Loravelle, so she does wrinkle her nose just a bit at the comment about the color from the mousy woman. The bit about twang twang and maro just sounds like nonsense, so the girl just ignores all that talk. The witch and the former servant are still arm in arm, although while one’s eyes are on the ground, the other’s are darting back and forth alert to the surroundings. Not alert enough though as Leo rescues her from a snake turned snack that she’s overlooked. The teen whistles and eagerly awaits Lora telling the captain that she’s never tried snake but has always wanted to. Orange’ll be disappointed if she doesn’t get to try it…
Lita nods at Lora's thanks. "Not a problem. You had your hands full." She elbows Leo playfully at the comment but is a faint distracted by the scenery that unfolds around them. It's been a long while since she's explored the forests and not simply run barefoot through them. Everything feels different with shoes on and it leaves her feeling all the more disconnected. Dark eyes narrow slightly to follow the path Leo's blade cuts through the trees and she follows as he retrieves the blade, reaching a hand out to trace her fingers along the snake's scales. "Shame," she muses, "he's gorgeous. Might fetch a shiny coin or two as a belt." She grins. She glances then towards the blur, wanting to ask what it means about having 'done fire and ice' but not even sure yet if the thing is real or not just in her head. Wouldn't be the first time. "Last time I hunted winged beasties, Hudson and I were stealing wyvern eggs up in Frostmaw." She side-eyes Leo for a moment but then settles her gaze back on Lora. "Are you fighting or are you bait for this trip?" She's mostly joking, probably.
Loravelle is extra careful the further along the path Leo leads them down, and grateful she made the right move in switching to boots. Flip-flops would have her feet killing her by now, but she's keeping pace with her arm linked with Orange's. That sudden movement Leo makes to kill a snake has her flabbergasted, however, pausing midstep whether the teenager beside her stops or not. Was he picking on her? Thing is, Lora didn' mind snakes that much even if she was cowardly. Two can play at that game, but she's probably gonna get in huge trouble for her obvious joke, as she crouches by the snake and swipes a bit of blood from its lifeless form with her thumb, only to lick it off. “I have. We drink their blood back home.” Looking pointedly at him, she adds, “Helps with virility...” Trying her hardest to hold back a grin, she glances at Lita and shrugs. She's probably gonna be bait now, with her jab at the wolf. “Not yet.”
Lita wrinkles her nose, making a face at Lora as the girl licks at the snake's blood. It wasn't that she'd done it, it was whatever weird power play was behind the maneuver for the pirate's benefit. And she's thinking she should have stayed home.
Leo was rarely caught off guard by the bard, and not yet snuck up on, but her response was nothing like he expected as she licked blood from her thumbprint. He had been slightly teasing, but his brows also slightly raised and he felt his stomach knot a little for reasons other than worry until he snapped out of it to realize Lita was speaking, presenting that question to Loravelle. Virility. Didn’t he have enough of that? Withholding a grumble at being outwitted by his lover, he turned to continue toward the clearing that passed close by some nests, one of which was occupied by a silver scaled female that fixed a glare in the distance in their direction, half camouflaged by the abundant plant life, though the creature wouldn’t abandon those wyrm eggs unless the group looked to be coming her way. The season called for plenty of other aeries or ground nests to be filled to some degree, causing Leo to turn a question back Lita’s way. “What’d you do with ‘em? The eggs. They worth anythin’?”
Loravelle 's face turns beet red after that because Lita heard what she said. When did she say gross things like that in public? And in front of a kid, too? Poor Leralynn. Poor Lita. Leo is a bad influence. She cringes at herself. “S-sorry...” Might be a good idea to keep her mouth shut, now. She follows behind the others, mentally smacking herself for her behavior. She's curious about wyvern eggs, though, even if a wyvern itself was nightmarish…
Lita is not judging Lora's power move. In later light, she'll likely be impressed at how far the girl's come to hold her own with Leo's brazenness. She just also doesn't always need to witness it first hand. She glances towards the silver wyrm, letting her gaze linger as they move past. "Sold 'em to the mages. 'Course this was before half of 'em were hunters and adventurers of their own right. The guild used to be more apt for book study back then. Commissioned all sorts of weird ingredients and parts." That seemed like a lifetime ago. She'd still been human then, even. The memory makes her grin. "Not sure what they're worth now if anything. 'Less you've a might to raise one of 'em." She shrugs at the thought. "Maybe you could train a couple to pull your ship around." She teases Leo.
Leo couldn’t help the chuff of breath that was nearly a laugh at Loravelle’s apology. Her wings were still in that fledgling state, folded close and tight to prevent her from flying free with her words or antics. But he wasn’t complaining over the baby steps. For every little bit of inappropriate behavior he was introducing to her, she, in turn, was helping to improve his patience and overall mood. Not intending to kill and let the serpent waste, it was hooked to the quiver on his shoulder blade, a splash of red and gray coloring against all the black. He took his bow in grip again as he came to the edge of the scorched clearing where two of their targets were snarling over territory, sometimes threatening an attack but never actually taking the bold first step of progressing on the other’s nest. “Think we’ll be doin’ a favor if we take down the blue?” He eyed the many horned red beast that Leo knew to be the more ornery and feral type, traditionally, but Leralynn had requested for blue. “Funny…” He reacted to Lita’s notion about a dragon drawn ship and glanced her way with that certain look that would account for more colorful words, teasingly in return, of course. Although he kept his voice quiet enough, he managed to stir the attention of both, side scales bristling like whiskers as the crimson wyrm kept leaping and flapping wings as if prepared to take flight and dive bomb toward the smell of beast, human and death, but in actuality, the male was quite the runt and left by its domineering mate to guard. Drawing a broad-tipped arrow from its casing, he nocked the ammo to tense strings. “What’s your plan, Ace?” He wasn’t certain if she planned to use weapons or bare strength, or create some diversion to give the rogue a clear shot.
Loravelle wants to comment that she thinks mages are weird but after what she said earlier? She's currently the weirdest person alive. What in the world would mages or anybody else want wyvern eggs for? Still hanging back from Leo and Lita, she's the last of the trio to glimpse the dragons and immediately wants to turn tail and head back into the cover of trees. Why is Leo nocking his bow? Why is he asking Lita for a plan? Why – Her shoulders sag. “...I'd rather go on a ship than deal with those,” she says under her breath. After Lita's comment about her being bait, she wonders if she'll actually be volunteered to be said bait. Perhaps if she continues to hang back, Lora will go unnoticed by wolf, vampire, and dragons alike.
Lita gets a bit lost in watching the two dragons for a moment. She's watching their feet stamp and wings beat, neither willing to take the first brazen step against the other without backup. She almost forgets the other three are present when Leo poses that question and she flickers her attention back to him, glancing over the arrow in his hand as recognition dawns. Right. Scales. She remembers. "You just want scales, right?" She sounds almost disappointed. But she'll suppose it wouldn't do good to try to take on both of the beasts while trying to keep Lora and the Blur from harm. "I'll go high, you go low?" She asks of Leo as she shrugs out of her overcoat, absently handing it to Lora. "Hold this?" She reaches for the dagger sheathed at her right thigh and tosses the blade loosely in her palm. "If you can distract the red one for long enough, I'll get you a handful of scales." She'd have no problem letting loose a little on the winged beast. She'd been antsy for days. At least she might not have to apologize for killing this one after.
Leoxander murmured low to the book keeper as he fixed his eyes somehow on his target while strands of dark and sun lightened blond hung over them. “You’ll be a’right, love. Jus’ a pit stop.” He had needed a chance to get to know the demon’s daughter better, in a sense beyond her reaction when he stole her snacks. And if an extra hand was needed along the way, even for the excuse of tagging along, he complied and followed through, for now. Maybe this wasn’t the ideal scene for Lora’, but it was a good way to break her into the idea of bloodshed that wasn’t supervised by the rules of a tournament. Lita had a point, though. Just scales. Unless either became a real threat, there wasn’t much need to kill either beast. “Word is the mages -are- holdin’ some sort’a gatherin’. If they still got any interest in those eggs we could sneak a few.” He looked toward Loravelle. He’d be busy keeping the red dragon… well, busy. Lita was going to put the blue out of commission, be it by death or unconsciousness. Leo wasn’t quite sure what Blue would do to him if he returned his daughter mauled by claw marks, though he assumed the girl would still be finding ways to get her hands on something sufficient, not wanting to encourage any necromancy talents in that wild section of Rynvale. So that left… “You think you can get your hands on one of those eggs? They don’t pay a lot of attention to colors.” He gave a glance over her sunny yellow dress, but knew from experience his body heat would pose a brighter target. It wasn’t so much that he was willing to risk the mortal over the undead. Leo was confident in his abilities that an arrow through the eye would cease the threat of her being harmed, not to mention he had been encouraging her to stretch those wings a bit; public speaking now stealing dragon eggs. Hopefully she wasn’t on the path to the docks to stomp home to miss out on more adventure, after this.
Loravelle takes Lita's overcoat without hesitation. That's a normal thing, in her world. Holding coats for people. Holding coats for people who are about to go after a dragon isn't normal, but she'll take what she can get. Watching the pair of dragons has her stomach doing cartwheels, and her eyes bounce from Lita to Leo. How in the world are they so confident about doing this? And Orange? ...Was she going to be alright? Letting go of the teen's arm momentarily for a silent prayer to Aramoth to protect that vampire and wolf so they don't get mauled by a pair of dragons. Halfway through that prayer however, her eyes snap open to give Leo an incredulous look. He's joking. ...He isn't. Leo wants her to get a dragon egg. What? She could use the excuse that she's holding Lita's coat to keep it safe but something tells her that isn't going to be enough. This is payback for the snake blood joke, isn't it? Well...She carefully folds Lita's overcoat and searches for a safe place to set it down, hopefully somewhere it won't get so dirty. Lora will have to wash it later if it does, or mend it. Having never seen a dragon egg up close, she's curious, but would have preferred a less dangerous setting to get a look at one. “P-point me toward the nest...” She can't believe her words, and instead of prayer, she's internally playing her counting and breathing game, working to calm her nerves before they have a chance to really be a problem.
Lita is far more interested in the red dragon, if she's honest. It seems the more aggressive of the two and she likes a challenge. But blue scales are what they're after, apparently so she'll suck it up. She reaches for Lora's elbow and squeezes gently in reassurance. "We're gonna sneak around the edge of the trees here, 'round behind the red one." She's pointing for Lora's benefit. "Leo should have a good vantage from here. And you'll be able to see the nest better from there, too." She lifts a hand to the pirate's shoulder, a 'don't worry, I'll keep her safe' gesture and then she's nodding for Lora to follow her around the clearing. She mostly forget Lora's behind her, intently watching the dragons, picking her way carefully through the treeline as not to startle them yet. Dragons are smart, clever even. Their advantage here lies in the territory struggle going on. When the red dragon sits between them and the blue one, Lita stops, nods towards the nest for Lora to see. It might seem counterproductive to start here if she were going after the blue dragon's scales but scales are tough things. Thick, hardy. They took time to steal without killing the beast and she'd need the extra surprise that would come from this vantage point. So would Lora. She crouches to unlace her boots and tug them off, wriggling her toes in the dirt. Lora probably wouldn't notice the black scar spreading like barren tree branches across the back of her left calf, the thing a living shadow, pulsating with the rush of adrenaline through the vampire's veins. She reaches a hand out to touch Lora's chin and draw her attention. "Don't be afraid. Run fast. You'll know when to go." She nods, trying to be reassuring. She draws a deep breath and then bolts from the trees at a sprint, aiming for the spine of the red dragon, keeping out of sight of the blue as much as she can. She's used to climbing trees barefoot. Rocks, mountains, cliffs. Dragon scales aren't so different and she's actually grinning as she clambers up the tail and spine of the red dragon. Its head swivels, annoyed, its wings beating furiously as it catches sight of her. The dragon rears to its right in a tight circle, jaws open wide with a screech. She doesn't want it to see Lora's break, so she runs left, the tip of her dagger scraping across its neck as she leaps towars a stunned blue dragon some feet away. She's trying to piss off the red dragon to keep it distracted, keep it trying to attack the blue to get to her, in turn keeping the blue busy, buy her a minute to pry some scales loose. She lands barefoot on the blue's left shoulder, narrowly missing its jaws. The red one had snapped after her as expected and the blue one snapped back, trying to register what this new enemy was. Lita flattens herself against the back of the blue dragon for a moment, the dagger planted between its wings to work at those scales.
Leoxander kept his gaze calm and sober when she answered him nervously, studying her a moment more before his attention moved back toward the agitated red runt. “The blue is gonna try to stay on it as long as it can. This one, though…” Odd that he could find something with the dragon to relate to, much as he despised them. “He ain’t too happy gettin’ left behind. The other one prolly ain’t comin’ back.” He was right on track with Lita’s words and thoughts. Usually there wasn’t this much discussing prior to carrying out a mission, but he tried to keep his voice as mellow as his eyes to provide some reassurance to the petite ‘mouse’ on what must be her first dragon hunt, also grateful for Lita’s touch of reassurance, no words needed. “It ain’t a carnival ride..!” He barked out at the vampire as she was having way too much fun ricocheting off dragon backs and manipulating the two against each other. Hoping to ground the red once it had moved from its nest, Leo moved half of the distance that Lita did around the trees to counter with another distraction point, aim raised and eyes focusing for an arrow that was a blurred missile abruptly landing deep within the wing and soldier joint of the more combative red. It twisted itself toward the lycanthrope once it realized the pain was not the bite of another blue, but this only gave the present one the opportunity to do so, momentarily forgetting the being on her back to drive jaws down harshly on the berserk wyrm’s barbed tail.
Loravelle appreciates Lita pointing out everything for their plan. It makes it a little less frightening, but still. ...She's gonna run off with a dragon egg. At the squeeze of her elbow, she forces a smile, though it's likely very obvious for both Lita and Leo that she's still anxious, but she follows the vampire after giving Leo a look. He owes her for this. Once they're in view of the nest and Lora has a good look of it, she goes back to taking deep breaths and silently praying to Aramoth for a heavy dose of bravery. Would she know when to go? Looking at Lita quizzically, she almost wants to ask, but then she's off, leaving Lora to stand stock still for a moment, awestruck. This must be her 'when'. Trying her hardest to tune out the roar of dragons and not watch as Lita takes care of one of the dragons (she's already forgotten which color), Lora runs for the nearest nest. The Red's. Upon reaching it, she finds a trio of eggs. Two red, fitting for red dragons, and one smaller green egg, with an odd iridescence that reminds her of something. Scrambling to scoop the green one up and flee for safety, wherever safety is, she notices that the eggs are a lot lighter than she thought. Thinking that they might each weigh the equivalent of a boulder but considerably smaller in size, this is kind of a blessing, right? They're all lighter than that. She peeks over her shoulder at wolf and vampire and dragons. Does she have time? Perhaps Aramoth would bless her with some cunning and speed to go with that jolt of bravery. Similarly to how she used the jacket Leo tossed to her long ago to store things while scaling a wall or stealing things from strange tents in Frostmaw, Lora removes her outermost robe and rolls two of the eggs into it, then wraps them up within the fabric like an odd-shaped bundle. Using the sleeves as 'straps' for her makeshift backpack, she gets back on her feet while grabbing the third, oddly-colored egg to tuck it beneath her under-robes to keep it hidden while she cradles it against her stomach, waiting for an opening to run for safety.
Shishi ’s daughter tucked away someplace relatively safe while Leo and Lita initiated this ‘hunt’. The girl reaches into her messenger bag and pulls out what appears to be a very heavy, yellowish white cube, just big enough to not be able to be held in just one of her hands. She sets the object on the ground in front of her and taps on its top face once with her middle and index fingers. The necromancer then shuts her eyes and claps her hands together lightly in front of her chest, beginning her ‘prayer’ to Vakmatharas. Almost immediately after she begins to mouth the words, the cube of bone begins to unfold into a seemingly impossible geometry, expanding and rotating in several hundreds of iterations until a halfling-sized skeleton stands before The Orange Witch. Near the center of its ribcage is a faintly glowing red gem that gives off a warming aura. ‘I’ve already done fire…’ the teen had said to Lita earlier, and here was a taste. Eyeless sockets stare towards the young mage, awaiting an order that quickly comes, “Don’t let anyone get eaten. Aye? And hit them really hard.” Waves of heat radiate off the top of the small skull as a confirmation that this construct of bone understands the assignment before it turns and trudges on its stubby leg bones to emerge onto the scene and stand in front of Leoxander. Practically every day for over a year, Leralynn has been pouring her mana into this origami collection of bone, magically hardening it and enhancing the power inside the gem that serves as its heart.The skeleton squares up with the descending red dragon that is towing the larger blue by its tail, which in turn appears to have Lita on its back. Hang on, vampiress. White flames erupt from the bottom of the right foot of the skeletal halfling, propelling the magically enhanced skeleton upward, directly into the path of the dive bombing train of dragons and delivering a monstrously heavy, somersaulting, flame boosted kick to the jaw of the red beast. Lita will surely feel the turbulence on her flight as the momentum of both dragons is halted and then redirected straight upward while the skeleton ‘lands’ back down on the ground, scattering into a pile of bones that quickly begin to reassemble themselves, prompted by another prayer to the God of Death from The Orange Witch…
Lita is wondering if they could plausibly market this as a profitable carnival ride now. Probably not. She has a handful of dragon scales in one hand, her dagger in the other, her knees and toes curled against the ridge of the blue's back for as much purchase as she can manage. She's very grateful when the blur of what she assumes is an arrow allows the blue some leverage over the runt and offers her a moment of easier prey than the vampire. There's no time to check to see if Lora had made it to the nest, but she can see both the dragons' heads so she'll assume they haven't made a quick meal of the mouse yet. The red snaps back at the blue's wing, less brave than going for the neck but it's enough to make the blue buck and rear up on hind legs, beating her wings down towards the red. Lita scrambles, trying to keep her footing but her leg is numb and there's a smallish skeleton what-the-frisk-is-that-thing distracting her suddenly. She pauses too long to watch the bone golem attack the dragon and the figures this is a good time as any to try and bolt. The ground is somewhere in a relative downward direction, despite the world spinning a bit and she slides on her right hip along the beast's flank. It side-steps and she hits the dirt with an unceremonious thud as the air rushes from her lungs. She's busy watching the skeleton reassemble itself, so are the dragons for a moment, though they're likely debating it as a possible dinner option. She doesn't see the blue's tail whip upwards and she makes a dive to try and miss it but it catches her across the stomach and sends her skittering like a rag doll back towards the tree line.
Leo had hoped to avoid the display of necromancy in those wilds, but he should have known better than to think Leralynn would stand idly by. More so, keen ears catching the teenager’s remarks over the snarls and growls, he hoped the inanimate minion recognized that Orange meant ‘hit the dragons’, not the people harassing them. The land there was already scorched, so he didn’t put too much thought into the plains catching fire to spread when the fire enhanced skeleton positioned itself as a shield of sorts. At least the girl was keeping a safe distance, unlike the mouse who he’d sent on mission, and he was afforded a moment to check on his partner while the bone creature managed to make the red wyrm realize he was outnumbered, and, being the runt it was, survival instinct would outweigh aggression. Thrashing against the burn of scaled face, a punctured, bleeding tail and an lame wing, the creature let out an infuriated roar, but had little to no loyalty to the eggs it left behind, trying to escape deeper into the forest and survive the encounter. At the impact of tail to his friend, the rogue’s attention is abruptly snapped back toward Lita and the blue, who was now turning on her with intention of teaching at least one of those intruders a lesson. Unfortunately for the dragon, Leo’s arrows were quicker, and not willing to risk major injury to the vampire, there was no time to hesitate when he released one of the broad tips into the side of its throat. Though scales were armored well enough to keep it from puncturing too deep to be fatal, it would tear reptilian eyes off the woman and toward the pirate’s position as he called to both Lita and Orange. “We’re gonna have to finish it off, she ain’t yielding.”
Loravelle was about to run for Orange to check on the girl and see if she's safe, but immediately veers away from her at the sight of whatever magic she's conjuring up. And that skeleton...She shudders. But the girl is praying, and that's reassuring. Vakmatharas wasn't a deity Lora typically turned to, but the fact that she's hearing any sort of prayer is good enough for her. That burst of adrenaline she had is already waning. Too much bravery and recklessness for this typically timid woman. Her hair is a mess, robes snagged on branches and dirty from running for presumed safety, but the two eggs secured to her back are still there, thankfully. The one she cradles on her front is, too. She looks around. Where's Lita? ...Where's the red dragon? Her goal was get an egg and get out, and she got three. ...Time to get out. Lora would probably look back at this moment absolutely as an act of cowardice, but she had the excuse of trying to protect what she managed to steal from one nest to have her prepare to turn tail and flee south toward civilization. If the rogue happens to look her way, she'll motion that she's heading back, patting the egg hidden beneath her robes. Along the way, she grabs for Lita's overcoat too to carry it back to the Jolly Roger with her, draping it over her shoulders to help better hide the pair of red eggs hidden in her yellow robes-turned-backpack. If only she could run back to town faster…
Shishi ’s daughter salutes Leo when he expresses the game plan. "Aye aye." The spell/prayer she was putting together shifts abruptly in tone and the reassembling skeleton separates into two collections of bone. The half containing the glowing red gem folds back down into a spikey ball that starts rolling towards Leralynn, who is on her way chasing after Loravelle, both to get away from the dragon and to get out of the blast zone of whatever that second set of bones is about to unleash. More impossible folding goes on with that remaining selection of bones, all of them becoming skeletal hands that are propelled like little ballistic missiles by the flames that erupt from what should be their wrists. Each one latches onto the blue dragon at various points around her scaly body. While Orange is running, she’s still in that prayerful posture, looking behind her to see when the other two hunters are clear enough from the beast before she ends her incantation and every single one of those boney hands explodes into fiery bursts of superheated, hardened bone shrapnel…
Lita is a bit shaken up after a good tumble through the brush but she mostly gets to her feet, a string of curses on her lips for the dragon. The dozen or so scales are still clutched in her hand, biting into her skin. She takes half a second to catch her breath as she picks herself back up to her feet and heads back out from the treeline, if only to make sure Lora and Leo were still upright as well. She glances from Leo to the blue and then the red, back to the pirate. Not for the first time in last couple of weeks, she'd wished Tails would hurry up and finish her new dagger already. "You can't rush great art," she's murmuring sarcastically under her breath. She catches sight of Lora disappearing between the forest trees and there's a brief weight lifted from her chest. Carrying about people, worrying about them, is utterly exhausting work. Lita takes the long way around the clearing, opposite Leo and the Blur and the bone golem, sticking to the trees since she's limping worse now. But she refuses to leave without her boots. She makes her way to them and tugs them back on before turning back towards where she'd left the pirate and the Blur, who she catches sight of heading back to town as well, so assuming Leo is following suit, she high-tails it as well. Just as well since bone shrapnel is a thing now.
Leoxander had another arrow at ready when the strange necromancy project began, and that confused knot remained etched in his brow until he heard a warning go off in his head. Brows then raised a moment before he raised his arms to shield himself, stumbling back and nearly falling backward as a few of those bone slivers bounced at his bare feet, perhap managing to catch one or two in his forearm or leg, but sparing his nocturnal eyes from the flash. That had more or less done it, a few drops of life left in the collapsed dragon, who Leo approached tentatively as it sprawled on the ground near the nest. There might be a cracked egg or two from the explosion, but she had said she just wanted scales. The rogue put the struggling beast out of its misery using the softer eye socket as target to get through the creature's armor and puncture the vital organ beneath her skull, and so the wyrm went still. A glance after the direction the three had gone and he moved to retrieve Lita’s boots, likely to finish the journey for his own since they were so close to the clearing, before he’d return to the south shore to track down the three.