the Rift


[PRIVATE] Life&death

Isopia the Mountain That Knows Posts: 780
Dragon's Throat Apostle atk: 6.5 | def: 10 | dam: 8.0
Mare :: Tribrid :: 18hh :: 3 - is now aging slowly HP: 90 | Buff: NUMB
Hubris :: Royal Bronze Dragon :: Shock Breath & Frost Breath & Babel :: Royal Gold Dragon :: Fire Breath Odd
#1

[Set after Shida's death. #impatient]

This

is the setting.

This is what you see.

The sun is sinking down, bathing the fields in all the colours of blood and gold.  There is a dead body before the demi-goddess; the now lifeless corpse of the buckskin mare. Isopia didn't even know her name. At the mare's side is her hellhound who, while having been left alive during the battle, is now allowing himself to sink into the depths of death, still apparently loyal to his bonded, following her even as she dies.

However there is no time for Isopia to mourn the mare's death. During one of Shida's explosions, an egg was suddenly unearthed from the ground. Likely it had been buried there for safe keeping, and then forgotten. Shida's lifeless body had hit the ground at almost the same time that the egg did, and while emotional courtesy likely dictated that Isopia should tend to Shida, her attention was given fully to the egg.

Hubris too had been pulled from his obvious state of wanting no part in the fight, and had immediately raced over, recognizing the egg at once for what it was. With wide, surprised eyes, Isopia reached a wing down to gently move some of the earth away from the roundish object. It was more of an oval, actually, with a golden crystalline structure comprising the outer walls of the shell.

"Do I ... does it need to be kept warm?" Isopia asked, turning to Hubris. The dragon nodded, moving forward and wrapping his arms around the egg. As he did so, it began to stir..

@Volterra


Isopia
the mountain that knows
Image Credits

Abandon all hope, ye who enter here

Volterra the Indomitable Posts: 785
Dragon's Throat Sultan atk: 8.5 | def: 11.5 | dam: 8.5
Stallion :: Equine :: 17'2hh :: 3 HP: 80 | Buff: SENSE
Vérzés :: Common Red Dragon :: Frost Breath & Toxic Breath & Vadir :: Royal Gold Dragon :: Fire Breath & Shock Breath Snow
#2


He, too, has killed recently. It is not his first, but has affected him far more deeply than ever before - there is a whole world of difference between destroying an undead bone-monster who had attacked him for no apparent reason, and putting down a lover in an act of grief-fuelled revenge at the death of a child.

Of course, the child had turned out to be alive and well, but that is besides the point. The leviathan can still feel Airlia's blood on his skin like a crude crimson baptism, despite the fact he'd bathed and scrubbed himself until he ached; he can still see her eyes as she died, can still feel the traitorous spasm of satisfaction at the knowledge that he had ended her, that he played God with a woman he could have loved. He takes no pleasure in the fact, despite his warlord's pride at such a comprehensively-won battle. She is dead, and he's left with memories, bruises, and a thankfully unharmed daughter to contend with.

The dragons offer little support; they care not a jot for their titan bonded's lingering guilt over the whole situation. They only know that they helped, and they both engage in a shameless game of one-upmanship. "I burnt her," says one. "Well, I clawed a hole in her skin," retorts the other. Volterra is caught between them, a pawn in their bragger's games, and it tires and agitates him. He is relieved when they both suddenly stand to attention and disappear through the meadow like bullets of red and gold. He seizes the opportunity to graze in peace, trying to force his mind to think of the good parts about killing Airlia instead of dwelling on the reasons why he had to.

His head jerks up, however, when the dragons send him an image. It is Isopia - his heart twists, constricts - and she has an egg. There is also a familiar-looking carcass nearby, but his main focus is for the egg. It does not surprise him that the Mountain should seek another companion - the only surprise to him is how his limbs suddenly itch to move towards her, how a smile slips unbidden onto his face at the thought of them both with two dragons, how his mind is suddenly flooded with memories of three previous hatchings attended by both of them.

That's when the smile fades, when the weak heart hardens and the limbs cease the steps they've taken without his permission; she no longer has those memories. She doesn't recall the day that they met, when Vérzés tangled intricate fingers into the tufty mane of the awestruck colt whilst the little raven sat on her branch and discussed names. She doesn't remember a newborn bronze watching on as an awkward young stallion explained the intricacies of a man's desires, and she will never know of the day when a gold smashed her way free from her egg whilst surrounded by silver, bronze and lowly red. Those memories are his and his alone now, and that is why he has tried to make himself hate her. That is why he has vowed never to seek her out again, to try and drive her from his mind as she had done to him. That is why he can't let himself love her anymore, because she doesn't know who the fuck he is.

But that doesn't explain why his legs are still trying everything in their power to take him towards her.

"You got to come," whines Vérzés, sending him the most pouty of dragon-pouts in the history of dragon-pouts. "Tradition." The leviathan tries to steel his resolve, but it wavers and breaks like the eggs of so many dragons. He has to be there. Just for today, he has to forget - ironically - what has happened, and be there for her.

Because if by some miracle she ever gets her memories back, she'll never forgive him if he's not.

He breaks into a canter, colossal hooves bringing him swiftly towards her. The corpse nearby attracts a momentary glance, searching for why it's familiar, but he swiftly looks towards the egg and the giant mare. Vadir has already settled herself down a short distance away from the egg, sniffing curiously at it whilst also side-eying Isopia with thinly-veiled contempt. Vérzés has scooted right up to Hubris, chirping a greeting and trying to convey to the bronze that Volterra isn't here to argue or to fight. They're here for him, his bonded, and the new addition to their family.

Volterra looks over to Isopia, his throat constricting and words suddenly escaping him. She will no doubt wonder why he's here, when his last words to her had been a rather self-explanatory go to hell. "It will need meat," is all he can say, his voice guarded and thrumming with an emotion that he cannot specify.

AND THE WORLD WILL END IN FIRE
dragons: iconian fonts.dafont


SHORT? I TRIED 8C @Isopia

[ you can't stray from what you are, you're the closest thing to hell i've seen so far  ]
[ use of force/magic on him is permitted aside from death/maiming ]




Isopia the Mountain That Knows Posts: 780
Dragon's Throat Apostle atk: 6.5 | def: 10 | dam: 8.0
Mare :: Tribrid :: 18hh :: 3 - is now aging slowly HP: 90 | Buff: NUMB
Hubris :: Royal Bronze Dragon :: Shock Breath & Frost Breath & Babel :: Royal Gold Dragon :: Fire Breath Odd
#3

Isopia looks up, and rather than staring blankly and without comprehension at the ruby-eyed stallion approaching and his pack of dragons, there is a spark of knowing in the depths of her golden gaze.

But it isn't the way it was before.

After their last meeting, Isopia insisted that Hubris tell her everything. And she meant everything. So ultimately, her plan of forgetting Volterra had really not lasted long at all. Only...only Ophelia had removed more than her memories when she'd used her magic on the Mountain. Inadvertently her love had gone too. Her love was all tied up in her memories of the monochromatic man before her, and when those were removed, so too was the emotion she had associated with him. Hubris had flooded her mind with everything that had ever happened between she and The Indomitable. Only...only it was like looking at them through a mirror. It was like it was all happening to someone else. 

She watched herself as a child stumble upon the hatching of the red, arguing that naming him after blood was a bizarre choice. She watched the girl and boy stop a wildfire, and she watched them build her hot-tub. Memories that, when she possessed them, caused warmth to stir inside of her belly, now just filled the black spaces of her mind, but did not stir her soul.

She remembered him...but...

...her heart didn't. Only her mind.

"That makes sense." Isopia replied levelly, her voice neutral. 

Hubris looked to Verzes, wanting to cry instead of welcoming someone new into their family. The bronze leaned heavily against the red, sighing into his friend's shoulder, and wishing he had done more to avoid the future currently unfolding before him. 

I loved you. Isopia thought, staring at Volterra as if it was for the first time. She traced the contours of his face and his shoulders with his eyes, and though she now remembered him, it was like she was seeing him new again. In a way, he was new again. Because she didn't remember him in the right way

And you.. Flashes of Aithniel merged before her eyes and her brows tensed slightly. You slept with her..and that hurt my feelings.. It was confusing and bizarre to think about in the first-person context. She could understand why someone in the same situation would be upset, it just didn't seem to be the sort of thing that she would be upset about. Saying it hurt her feelings sounded so pathetic and childish, but it was the truth. Only her feelings ran deeper than most, because she kept them so guarded. He'd broken her, and that was something she never thought would be possible. Then again she never thought she could fall in love.

And yet she had been.

"I-" She was going to say remembered, but that wasn't quite right, and the two of them had had more than enough not-quite-right words shared between them for a lifetime. "Hubris showed me everything. The memories I erased of you. He gave them back."

Raising his eyes, unsure of what Volterra's reaction would be, the bronze dragon merely shrugged, his attention falling back towards the shining egg which had begun to rock and roll around.

"Before you asked me how I could do it. If you meant so little to me that I would rather just erase you than deal with you." She began, her golden eyes finding it hard to rise and meet his. Even after all they had been through, it was still so hard for Isopia to talk about her feelings"It was the opposite. You meant too much, and I knew you wouldn't change..." Her quad horned head shook slightly, but there was no judgement in her voice.  She remembered every word he had said to her, before he'd stormed away. It was all those accusations that had allowed her to force Hubris to restore her memories - the parts that he could anyways - and she felt she needed to defend herself.

Her past self.

"I didn't think we were worth more than that, but then you slept with my cousin..My blood. That was upsetting. And then I found out how many others there were...and.." Her head shook again, as if trying to see through a fog or parse something she couldn't quite articulate. "I told you once to follow your instincts and live a life unrestrained. I am not going back on that now...I suppose I thought that if I meant so much to you, loving only me would be enough. It wouldn't be a restraint it would just be.." Ugh. This sort of thing really wasn't in her wheel-house. She sighed, and tried again. "...Enough to satisfy you." 

As for his other criticisms, of not deserving the good, that she should go to hell, she offered no comment. Perhaps he was right on those accounts, she really didn't know.

All the while her voice was calm and easy. These things should have caused her throat to close, caused tears to fall from her eyes, but they didn't. She was talking about a life she no longer was appropriately tethered to...a life she could remember but not feel.

"Our son...I took him from you, from the world." She said. Now her voice was soft.  "It was wrong of me. I do see that now. But I couldn't let him grow inside of me, knowing how you made me feel. I've never hurt like that before - not when I learned of your children and all of the other women..." Again, that subtle shake of her head. "I gave birth to him, but he was already dead. I buried him myself..."

As her voice trailed off, the egg began to crack open.

@Volterra


Isopia
the mountain that knows
Image Credits

Volterra the Indomitable Posts: 785
Dragon's Throat Sultan atk: 8.5 | def: 11.5 | dam: 8.5
Stallion :: Equine :: 17'2hh :: 3 HP: 80 | Buff: SENSE
Vérzés :: Common Red Dragon :: Frost Breath & Toxic Breath & Vadir :: Royal Gold Dragon :: Fire Breath & Shock Breath Snow
#4


She knows.

His heart clenches. She remembers. For some reason, he hadn't considered this as a possibility. He'd assumed that once the memories were gone, they were gone, irretrievable, however he'd underestimated the vessel of her dragon. It makes sense now he thinks about it, as after all it had been Hubris who told Vérzés what happened, implying that he remembered even if his bonded didn't. But the knowledge that she remembers shakes the giant to his core, and it shows on his face in the form of his eyes widening and his lower jaw sagging slightly to express his surprise at the revelation.

The Indomitable tries to steel himself - tries to remember that he's still angry, that it doesn't matter if she remembers him because she forgot him in the first place. It's hard, though, when that endlessly optimistic part of him thinks that things will go straight back to how they were, that her feelings will come flooding back with her memories. After all, to Volterra, his love for her comes as a direct result of the memories they share, so in his somewhat simplistic mind, he assumes that her remembering them will bring back her love, too.

Volterra listens as she speaks, but his eyes are focused on the dragon egg on the ground. This isn't simply because the hatchings always intrigue him and he's keen to see what colour will meld with Isopia's mind, but because it's hard for him to concentrate on thinking about a reply when he looks at her, when he drinks in every ounce of her beauty and her raw, earth-forged power. He can't know that her own eyes are fighting the same battle. It was the opposite. You meant too much, and I knew you wouldn't change... Again his traitorous heart speeds up its beating and the leviathan glances up from the egg to look at the Mountain; the words are more than he could ever have expected, more than he deserves after what he'd said.

She continues. I suppose I thought that if I meant so much to you, loving only me would be enough. He's reminded starkly of Roskuld (pre-fermented-apples Roskuld) saying essentially the same thing to him, and his massive limbs shift guiltily as he considers the words. Although he disagrees, a newfound maturity born of age and experience has made him almost understand why she felt the way she did. "Kis hollo," he begins, because he feels like he can call her that again now. "I do love only you. You might not be the only one who has my body, but you are the only one who has my heart." The truth is open, honest, raw, like a wound exposed to the open air. Saying it, admitting it, feels like a confession of weakness, but the titan can't help considering the fact that maybe admitting such a thing actually makes him stronger than he'd ever thought he was.

Then, she speaks of their son. He visibly balks, stepping backwards and snorting slightly as the words assault his ears like fingernails on a blackboard. He'd shied away from finding out the truth from Isopia's sire, because his diehard stance on the murder of children means that he would have to choose between becoming a hypocrite or trying to uphold his vigilante justice against the woman he loves. Volterra operates on an eye for an eye, yet how can he possibly apply that to Isopia? Airlia had killed his child (so he thought), so he had killed her. Isopia has essentially done the same, and he's aware that he should apply the same rules to her.

But he can't. He'd begun to fall for Airlia, he can't deny that, but it was nothing like he feels for the Mountain. Comparing the two is like comparing a leisurely mountain stream to a cascading, crashing waterfall; similar, but one is ultimately vastly superior, vastly more intense, and vastly more catastrophic.

He tries to reason with himself by thinking that his daughter had been very much alive, a living, breathing child who he could train and interact with, whereas the son he'd conceived with Isopia had been nothing more than a fetus. But, points out the little voice in his head that oddly always seems to sound like Vadir, he was developed enough to bury. He was developed enough to have a gender. He was still a child, even if he'll never feel the wind on his skin. He shakes the voice away.

Thankfully, he is saved from having to come up with an answer by the egg on the ground, as it begins to crack and crinkle. He can't help but be drawn to it, and Vadir and Vérzés too; three sets of bonded eyes dart between the egg and its soon-to-be mind-partner, the intrigue evident in each pair of crimson irises.

AND THE WORLD WILL END IN FIRE
dragons: iconian fonts.dafont


@Isopia

[ you can't stray from what you are, you're the closest thing to hell i've seen so far  ]
[ use of force/magic on him is permitted aside from death/maiming ]




Isopia the Mountain That Knows Posts: 780
Dragon's Throat Apostle atk: 6.5 | def: 10 | dam: 8.0
Mare :: Tribrid :: 18hh :: 3 - is now aging slowly HP: 90 | Buff: NUMB
Hubris :: Royal Bronze Dragon :: Shock Breath & Frost Breath & Babel :: Royal Gold Dragon :: Fire Breath Odd
#5

His words, even a few weeks earlier, would have had an entirely different response. But of course now, they are just words. They are sounds her mind takes in an analyzes, but they do not pierce the veil of her heart.

They come too late.

Isopia can feel her mind scratching around, as if trying to find whatever switch Volterra had previously turned on inside of her, and flick it back into the position he wants it to be in. She isn't even sure that she wants to be in love with him again, but she feels like she's currently in a state of free-fall. Something is wrong, and she knows that the something has to do with Volterra, and the complicated history between them. She doesn't speculate about whether or not she regrets having removed the memories, but she does trust her past self enough to know that it was done out of necessity. An Isopia who loves was a dangerous Isopia. It was an Isopia who killed a baby, who attacked Volterra. The demi-goddess has no desire to become emotionally-driven and reckless again, but she would love Volterra if she had the chance.

At least she thinks she might.

"Do we..." Her voice is soft, unsure. "Can we start over?" She isn't pleading with him, her tone suggests that she's honestly unsure. Can they start over?

And perhaps more importantly, would he want to?  

Does she?

If Volterra had voiced his thoughts about the justice Isopia owes with regards to their child, she might have told him that she's already paid it. She did die, when she murdered the baby. For weeks, months she was a hollow husk of herself. It was all she could do to keep breathing. The Mountain did not take the life of their child without thought, and nor had she ever let herself off the hook for her actions. 

The creature inside of the egg, clearly unphased by this weighty discussion, decided that it was time to make its - his - grand debut. Claws, small but sleek, began to prod at the crystalline shell, knocking away bits until his hands could force themselves into the openings, using leverage to snap the shell away. A golden hand reached out, gently tapping through the hole he had made, as if to see if the outer part of the shell was the same shape as the inner. Deciding it was, he retracting his hand and for a moment nothing happened. Then suddenly his spined-back broke through the hole. It seemed he had turned himself around and used his legs to push on the opposite wall, forcing his shoulders and back through the opening he'd already created. Although he flopped unceremoniously onto the ground, he quickly righted himself, immediately surveying those around. His eyes fell first upon Isopia, and for a moment he regarded her solemnly. Then at least, he opened his mouth revealing rows of tiny teeth and abruptly snapped them shut with a grin. He shot a glance towards Hubris and the red, giving them each only a momentary stare, before honing in on the dead body of Shida.

Lurching forward on legs not yet used to supporting weight, the gold moved to the body of the buckskin, and happily helped himself to the flesh of her neck. 


Isopia
the mountain that knows
Image Credits

Volterra the Indomitable Posts: 785
Dragon's Throat Sultan atk: 8.5 | def: 11.5 | dam: 8.5
Stallion :: Equine :: 17'2hh :: 3 HP: 80 | Buff: SENSE
Vérzés :: Common Red Dragon :: Frost Breath & Toxic Breath & Vadir :: Royal Gold Dragon :: Fire Breath & Shock Breath Snow
#6


Can we start over?

The stallion hesitates. Again, this isn't something he'd planned for, but now he thinks about it....would it really be that bad? A clean slate for them, a fresh start. Fewer misunderstandings, hopefully. This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance rarely offered to any others - to go back to the start, those important fledgling days of a friendship, of a relationship, and try to fix the errors of last time.

There's still so much left unsaid. About their child, about her jealousy, about his womanizing, and he should probably confess about the Roskuld fermented apple incident too before she finds out from somebody else, but for now Volterra simply nods. "Of course." Right now, there's more important things to concentrate on, like the fact Isopia is about to share her mind with a second dragon.

Vérzés looks across to Hubris, searching the bronze's features for any signs of jealousy. The red had been devastated when Volterra found Vadir's egg, desperately trying to make his bonded realise that he only needed him. Of course, Volterra couldn't have turned down the chance to bond to a golden queen, but Vérzés had feared that such a bond would take some of the stallion's love away from him. His fears had, in a way, been confirmed. Given the Indomitable's innate shallowness, he sometimes subconsciously favours Vadir because of her colour, gives her preferential treatment despite her deeply unpleasant nature. The two do not get along, even if they antagonise each other less than they used to. Vérzés is a lowly red who refuses to bow to colour hierarchy, whereas Vadir is a regal gold who enforces that same hierarchy with an iron fist, determined to make all others bow before her. That is bound to cause friction, and, indeed, it has.

So Vérzés hunts for those same telltale signs in Hubris. Jealous, anxiety, anger. After all, Hubris is a bronze, so he would have every right to be offended that Isopia should seek another dragon when she already has such a glorious royal one. The ruby-red beast tilts his head at Hubris and asks, in a draconic mixture of chirps and body language, "You worried?"

Vadir, meanwhile, is watching the egg with a face of utter fascination. She rears up on her hindlegs as a golden hand pokes free from the shell, sweeping her scythed tail and decapitating several flowers in the process. Volterra can feel a strange mixture of emotions coming from her - curiosity at this new gold, jealousy that there could be another rival queen when she herself is surely enough for all of Helovia, and a thrusting surge of domination, a determination to assert her authority over this newborn whippersnapper. Don't even THINK about touching that dragon, mentally growls Volterra, sensing that Vadir's methods of asserting her dominance will be less than cordial. She shifts, ignores him, and continues to stare like a hunting predator at the egg.

When it hatches and the newborn unfurls like a length of rope, however, Vadir's body language changes. "It's male," she tells him, her surprise evident in her cold voice. Volterra's brows raise. He has known of this phenomenon only once before, Amaris' male gold, but as he hasn't seen her since, he can't help but think he may have imagined it. This newborn, however, is very real, and he doubts that Isopia is going to disappear anywhere.

Vadir leans forward to get a closer look at the newborn, but before she can get near to him he's sprung off towards the carcass nearby. Sensing her chance, she spreads her wings and takes one long leap, landing heavily on the carcass and rearing high. She extends her massive wings, displaying every inch of her magnificent size, then emits a loud hiss and flings herself towards the other dragon. She attempts to knock him off the carcass and pin him beneath her formidable bulk, her expression ferocious yet her movements surprisingly gentle. It's clear that this isn't an attack meant to hurt - she pulls her punches deliberately so as not to harm the hatchling, making it quite evident that her movements are intended to simply dominate the male not harm him. If she is successful in pinning him, she will remain in place for long enough to take one bite of the corpse herself before leaping away and releasing him.

Volterra takes a step forwards, horrified at his dragon's behaviour. Vadir, I told you not to! he bellows at her through their bond.

She gives a haughty sniff. "He needs to learn place," she points out. "Females always eat first. He gold, but he still male."

That is scant consolation, and the leviathan looks to Isopia with an apology ready on his lips. Before it escapes, however, he pauses; he's sure she will understand that the gesture was one of dominance, not aggression, and that Vadir's actions were not as a result of Volterra's command. The Mountain is, after all, very knowledgeable about life and its quirks; he prays she will realise that this was simply an ancient, primal act of asserting authority, not something with any meaning behind it. He relaxes his features and simply bobs his head. "A gold - congratulations," he rumbles. The first hint of his old wolfish smile suddenly returns. "Vadir is smitten."

"Piss off," comes the gold's frosty response. There's a strange warm hum in her mind, though; there finally exists a creature worthy of her attention, a potential mate, albeit very far off. If this young male proves his strength, proves he's worthy of the scales he has been given...who knows?

Vérzés simply looks at Hubris, gives a put-upon sigh and presses his paws to his face, quite clearly saying bloody golds!!!

AND THE WORLD WILL END IN FIRE
dragons: iconian fonts.dafont

[ you can't stray from what you are, you're the closest thing to hell i've seen so far  ]
[ use of force/magic on him is permitted aside from death/maiming ]




Isopia the Mountain That Knows Posts: 780
Dragon's Throat Apostle atk: 6.5 | def: 10 | dam: 8.0
Mare :: Tribrid :: 18hh :: 3 - is now aging slowly HP: 90 | Buff: NUMB
Hubris :: Royal Bronze Dragon :: Shock Breath & Frost Breath & Babel :: Royal Gold Dragon :: Fire Breath Odd
#7

She wants to feel relief, but of course she doesn't. In her mind, full now with memories but not the corresponding emotions, she thinks starting over is quite reasonable. But even Isopia, emotionally-thick as she is, realizes that reasonableness is not what is important here. What is important is the future that has now opened up between them.

And like always, apparently it's a future that already involves Volterra and one of Isopia's cousins.

Hubris shrugs without commitment towards any one emotion. The bronze is a kind creature. He is social and submissive, despite his royal stature, and he knows that Isopia is more or less incapable of having a favourite. Really, the only thing the elder dragon is concerned about, is whether or not this new brother of his will be a good or bad influence upon The Mountain.

As Babel, as he will come to be called, is tackled, he allowed his body to immediately go limp. Even in this infantile period of life, he is clever. He doesn't want his green and growing bones to snap, and from the force of the female gold's weight, he knows that he does not stand a chance. She pins him easily and all but his eyes offer submission. But his eyes, two black coals, peer back into her own. He innately recognizes the golden queen for what she is, a respects her authority of him because of her gender and her age. And although he submits to her, he is not submissive. He will never be that.

Babel cannot help the snarl that pushes his golden lip upwards as Vadir makes off with a piece of this, his first supper, but quickly he disguises the grimace, plunging his face into the hole that she has created.

Isopia watches this display dispassionately, uninterested by dragon hierarchy or politics. She doesn't notice the way that Hubris shrugs to Verzes, or the way the bronze reaches out into the mind of the gold, interested to see what is there. He finds only hunger, as does Isopia. 

"He feels so different.." She muses out loud. "I think you said something similar when Vadir was born." Isopia couldn't bring herself to say, I remember you saying something similiar.., because that wasn't quite right. She didn't remember. She just had the memories now, but that wasn't quite the same. 

Her golden eyes found Volterra's. None of this was going to be quite the same.


Isopia
the mountain that knows
Image Credits

Volterra the Indomitable Posts: 785
Dragon's Throat Sultan atk: 8.5 | def: 11.5 | dam: 8.5
Stallion :: Equine :: 17'2hh :: 3 HP: 80 | Buff: SENSE
Vérzés :: Common Red Dragon :: Frost Breath & Toxic Breath & Vadir :: Royal Gold Dragon :: Fire Breath & Shock Breath Snow
#8


Vérzés can't help but admire Hubris' attitude, his noncommittal shrug that seems to imply he shares none of the red's anxieties. The crimson dragon contemplates this, wishing he'd been able to think of it in such a way when Vadir hatched. Alas, Volterra's inability to ever bend the knee has rubbed off on the dragon he's grown up with; Vérzés refuses to submit, even when millions of years of scale-hierarchy breeding tells him he should. His life would be so much easier if he just accepted Vadir as his superior and let her throw her weight around, but his pride won't let him.

He hopes Hubris never has to suffer the same jealousies and endless nights of worry that he did, looking over his shoulder to see if his new sibling was plotting some dastardly way to assert their authority. In those first months, Vadir had made his life a living hell, although he'd kept a lot of his feelings bottled up away from Volterra so as not to worry him. His attitude had been flippant, his body language aggressive, but inside he was screaming with the constant state of anxiety that Vadir's arrival had forced him into.

Vadir's successful pin on the young gold sends a spasm of insufferable smugness into Volterra's mind. The stallion receives a mental glance of those haunting black eyes from the newborn and thinks that perhaps his submission isn't as absolute as it appears, but Vadir will hear none of it. Now that her duty as queen is done, the gold's body language turns relatively friendly, far friendlier than it's ever been to either Vérzés or Hubris. In the still-unnamed Babel, she's found the closest thing to an equal she will ever have. She can't seem to take her eyes off him, and extends a muzzle to try and curiously sniff him, even waving a paw in a greeting that is quite at odds with her previous display of dominance. To put it simply, she's fascinated by the shiny.

Volterra watches, chuckling despite himself. He's never seen the gold like this before; she is never friendly towards other dragons, but she seems thoroughly taken with the newborn, especially since he'd appeared happy to acknowledge her position as superior. He was right; she's smitten. His attention returns to Isopia as she speaks, and he feels a sudden spasm of warmth and joy in his chest; they're talking how they used to talk, before everything happened. They're talking as friends, as mutual dragon-bondeds, as confidantes, and he realises how much he's missed it.

Had somebody told him an hour ago that he'd be offering advice to the Mountain so soon afterwards, he wouldn't have believed them. But he's doing precisely that. "It's very different. Like me with Vérzés, you've spent a lot of your formative time with Hubris, so you get to know each other's habits and quirks as you grow up together. Adding a brand new consciousness, a brand new personality, into the mix is bound to be confusing." He glances between red and gold, eyes glowing with fondness for each of them. "For me, it was especially jarring because Vadir is female, which is completely different to having another male in my head. It should be a bit smoother for you because they're both the same gender, but it'll still take some getting used to."

Another glance between his dragons and then between Isopia's. "It's worth it, though. They're worth it." And they are. They're the best things that ever happened to him - for all their flaws, he wouldn't change them for the world. "Have you got a name for him?"

AND THE WORLD WILL END IN FIRE
dragons: iconian fonts.dafont

[ you can't stray from what you are, you're the closest thing to hell i've seen so far  ]
[ use of force/magic on him is permitted aside from death/maiming ]




Isopia the Mountain That Knows Posts: 780
Dragon's Throat Apostle atk: 6.5 | def: 10 | dam: 8.0
Mare :: Tribrid :: 18hh :: 3 - is now aging slowly HP: 90 | Buff: NUMB
Hubris :: Royal Bronze Dragon :: Shock Breath & Frost Breath & Babel :: Royal Gold Dragon :: Fire Breath Odd
#9

Babel's manipulative nature already begins to exert itself. Although he wishes to continue eating - somewhere deep inside he knows that the flesh on this dead corpse is rightly his, he pauses long enough to return the golden queen's greeting. There is a keen intelligence in the male's black gaze, and although his stomach screams at him to continue gorging himself on his meal, he offers a guttural rumble towards Vadir. It isn't a refined sound, not yet anyways. But he judges that it will be good enough for the honey-coloured woman before him. With that taken care of, his eyes once again find the torn flesh of Shida's shoulder, and he continues eating. Rubine splotches appear on his belly and his arms, which pull into the mare's body, grasping bits of ligament and tearing them free.

Isopia nods as Volterra speaks. His words make sense, and already she feels that her relationship with this new mind will be drastically different than her current one with Hubris. Not better, not worse, just different.

"That sounds reasonable enough." She agrees, and then contemplates the dragonling before her, as Volterra asks what she will call it. Her lips twitch slightly, as if trying different things on for size. Ultimately, as with the naming of Hubris, the word she chooses is more of a representation of herself, than of the companion it will be associated with. "Babel." She says finally, her eyes raising from the hungry gold, to Volterra. "There was once a tower. It was created to reach up into the sky, to find the place where the Gods dwelled. Those who made it had grown so clever that they thought the heavens should be open to them. And so they built. They thought only of their goal and not what it represented. But of course they weren't as clever as they thought, and the Gods struck them, and their tower down. " She paused, thinking of her own cleverness, and how she'd thought she'd made all the right decisions. Now with a bit more time with which to see herself, she thought that perhaps she hadn't. 

"Babel. A cleverness that led to destruction." 


Isopia
the mountain that knows
Image Credits

Volterra the Indomitable Posts: 785
Dragon's Throat Sultan atk: 8.5 | def: 11.5 | dam: 8.5
Stallion :: Equine :: 17'2hh :: 3 HP: 80 | Buff: SENSE
Vérzés :: Common Red Dragon :: Frost Breath & Toxic Breath & Vadir :: Royal Gold Dragon :: Fire Breath & Shock Breath Snow
#10


The rumble seems to satisfy Vadir, although she continues to linger nearby and scrutinise the newborn with great interest. Leave him alone, says Volterra, amused despite himself at the queen's insatiable desire to poke and prod the hatchling. He's not a toy. With a haughty snort, Vadir deigns to obey the command and flutters onto her bonded's back where she nestles down comfortably, still not taking her eyes off the hatchling as she continues her feast.

The Mountain names her new companion Babel, and explains the reasons behind the name. "Interesting," he rumbles, and the word isn't said sarcastically - he is genuinely intrigued by the tale and its meaning. Perhaps it is setting the young dragon up to fall by naming him after a story of intelligence leading to destruction, but Volterra supposes he was guilty of the same thing when he named Vérzés after the Hungarian word for bleeding. He often thinks of the name and chuckles with a mixture of embarrassment and amusement, thinking he could have come up with something better now but also knowing that Vérzés wouldn't be Vérzés without his name.

And if the titan hadn't called his dragon that particular name, then perhaps Isopia would never have spoken to him on that day. Fate.

"Our first conversation was about names, do you remember?" He fixes her with his penetrative crimson gaze, knowing she will remember but wondering if she understands the meaning of it, the poetry, the mirror image of that first meeting reflected here. It is fitting that their fresh start should begin in the same way as their original one had, but with roles reversed - him attending her dragon's hatching, talking about names.

Perhaps that is why he simply cannot shake her, try as he might. Perhaps they are truly destined, two forces of nature on an inexorable, unchangeable path towards each other, leaving a trail of destruction and broken hearts in their wake.

AND THE WORLD WILL END IN FIRE
dragons: iconian fonts.dafont

[ you can't stray from what you are, you're the closest thing to hell i've seen so far  ]
[ use of force/magic on him is permitted aside from death/maiming ]




Isopia the Mountain That Knows Posts: 780
Dragon's Throat Apostle atk: 6.5 | def: 10 | dam: 8.0
Mare :: Tribrid :: 18hh :: 3 - is now aging slowly HP: 90 | Buff: NUMB
Hubris :: Royal Bronze Dragon :: Shock Breath & Frost Breath & Babel :: Royal Gold Dragon :: Fire Breath Odd
#11

Gorged on blood and flesh, the golden hatchling pulls himself from Shida's carcass and wanders - almost drunkenly - towards Isopia. He curls up on her hooves, which have begun to sprout grasses and mosses, making a perfect bed for the satisfied creature.

"Yes." She replies, her eyes narrowing slightly as she tried to conjure the images of that moment that Hubris had released back to her. They were tainted somehow, or at least darkened by their removal and replacement. But she could see it well enough. Her, sitting in a tree, arguing with the boy she didn't even know, about a name she didn't understand. In many ways, she was still that girl, and he that boy.

But in many ways, they weren't.

"I live in the Edge now.." She says, looking down at Babel as he sleeps. Her mind tells her that she and Volterra are close enough that she is allowed to share this information with him, but her soul no longer feels his magnetic pull. "After what my Father did.." She shakes her head, spitting out the words. Her anger at the Earth God's actions hadn't dissipated fully, and she was still more than a little disappointed in how he'd decided to handle things. "I was born in the Edge, so I thought it a likely place to return." She concludes, knowing that her words don't help to bridge the gap that their combined actions have put between them, but not knowing any other way.


Isopia
the mountain that knows
Image Credits

Volterra the Indomitable Posts: 785
Dragon's Throat Sultan atk: 8.5 | def: 11.5 | dam: 8.5
Stallion :: Equine :: 17'2hh :: 3 HP: 80 | Buff: SENSE
Vérzés :: Common Red Dragon :: Frost Breath & Toxic Breath & Vadir :: Royal Gold Dragon :: Fire Breath & Shock Breath Snow
#12


The giantess announces that she lives in the Edge now, and the giant inclines his head as he contemplates for the first time the fact that she'd lost her home when the Earth God dissolved it. "Ah, yes, the Falls. I was sorry to hear of its demise." More sorry than he can put into words. The Indomitable had always seen the Falls as his ideal home; he'd planned his life around joining it and one day ruling it, given its status as the herd of his patron God. The Throat had only supposed to be a means to an end, a 'practice run' at herd life before he took the Falls as his own and led it into an era of unparalleled opulence.

It's funny how life can decimate even the best-laid plans. Now the Falls is gone and Volterra has found himself growing more and more fond of the Dragon's Throat. It is unbearably hot in summer, sand gets everywhere, it's filled with people who still may not trust him, and it's the herd of a God who is only the leviathan's second favourite, but despite all that....despite all that, it is home. He now knows, with a conviction that surprises even himself, that he would do anything to protect it. That he cares deeply about it and its residents. That he would be willing to die in its name.

He also realises that Isopia doesn't even know he lives in the Throat - their argument had happened when he was still an outcast. This is the first time they've been able to talk as friends since then, and it's a refreshing change. He's missed the sexual side of their relationship of course, that one mind-blowing time that he holds in a sacred den in the back of his mind, but most of all he's missed this - the easy rapport, the friendship, the closeness. Things may never be the same between them, but this is a start. Ironic that it should happen surrounded by a half-eaten corpse and a gorged newborn dragon.

"I live in the Dragon's Throat, serving as its Gladiator." He shakes his mane, flicks an ear to rid himself of a persistent fly, and scans the Mountain's face for her reaction. "If you decide to leave the Edge...you would be welcome there." He's dipped his toes in the water; now it's time to step right in, to sink or swim. "Aithniel is the Throat's Sultana now." Again those eyes search her face for a reaction to that name; after all, the discovery of him bedding Aithniel was the straw that broke the camel's back. He hopes that the fact he's living beneath the Inquisitor, that they're on speaking terms and have raised a strong son with care and devotion, will earn the Mountain's approval and act as proof that Volterra cares for the offspring he sires. It could, of course, go in the other direction entirely, shatter the fragile peace they've settled on and cast their relationship back into doubt.

He glances over to the dead body, smothers a wry smile. I could be joining you soon, mate. On his back, Vadir barely hides a snigger.

AND THE WORLD WILL END IN FIRE
dragons: iconian fonts.dafont

[ you can't stray from what you are, you're the closest thing to hell i've seen so far  ]
[ use of force/magic on him is permitted aside from death/maiming ]




Isopia the Mountain That Knows Posts: 780
Dragon's Throat Apostle atk: 6.5 | def: 10 | dam: 8.0
Mare :: Tribrid :: 18hh :: 3 - is now aging slowly HP: 90 | Buff: NUMB
Hubris :: Royal Bronze Dragon :: Shock Breath & Frost Breath & Babel :: Royal Gold Dragon :: Fire Breath Odd
#13

She isn't sorry that the Falls was demolished. She is furious, but says nothing. Instead she merely bobs her skull to accept his offering of sympathy.

He mentions the Throat and Aithniel, and Isopia can feel her mind telling her body to stiffen, but it doesn't. Mentally she knows this comment should bother her. You loved him, and he slept with your cousin and that made you sad. It was a betrayal of some sort, because she is family, her inner-voice reminded her. Although this is true and she knows it to be true, the facts don't permeate through to her bones. And so she doesn't shake with anger, her eyes don't narrow, she doesn't verbally slap him for bringing up the past, not when they've decided to start over. Instead, her large golden eyes close for a moment and her head nods.

"That's is good to know."

"My-" She was about to say something about Zero, but realized she didn't actually know what to call him. Friend didn't seem right, and best friend might sound hostile before Volterra. Clearing her throat, she tried again. "I know quite a few of your herd mates." She said, narrow shoulders shrugging delicately. "Perhaps I will come to visit them again sometime."

And with that, her mind chastised itself for being so selfish. What was Zero going to do now that the Falls was gone? Would he again follow her to a new home? Surely not, for she could offer him nothing other than her company, were he to come to the Edge. Would he go back to the Throat, to his family? Suddenly the urge to see him and make sure that he was okay was all too strong. Her golden eyes found Volterra's ruby stare, before dropping to the sleeping Babel on her hooves.

"Wake up, we've got to go." Her eyes lifted as the dragon woke and snapped at the air, clearly not feeling like departing from slumber quite yet. "There's something I have to do-" Had they ever actually said goodbye to each other? From the images in her mind, it seemed as though they'd either left each other with a kiss, or with a scream and a slap. This felt ... platonic to the point of being painful. "I'll...I'll see you around." She offered, feeling empty and awkward.



Felt like a reasonable place to end?


Isopia
the mountain that knows
Image Credits

Abandon all hope, ye who enter here


Forum Jump:


RPGfix Equi-venture