Where Three Roads Meet -- Open

[Silverhart]

I can't catch a break today. The young lieutenant silently bemoaned his tragic circumstances, allowing himself to indulge in a moment of self pity. His first shore leave in months, and things were not going well. Moritz was off, mad at him... or something. He wasn't always 100% sure what she was thinking. He was sore and annoyed. And being run into was not improving his mood. He glared after the darting boy who'd run into him, and imagined for a moment chasing after him and giving him a sound thrashing. Eh. That sounded like too much work.

Instead, he headed off in the opposite direction, on the hunt for a warm bath and some clean clothes. He had no doubts that Moritz would find him again - that Dire could track through high water if she had a mind too. He glanced at the passing shops, slowly making his way toward the higher-end establishments. The bedraggled sailor stood out like a sore thumb in this part of time, but he was at least in welcome company. The streets were swarming with souls, and in tighter side streets Sterling had to fight his way through. Eventually he emerged out into a more open courtyard, where Drakes and hosts of other creatures loitered as their masters inspected wares and souvenirs.

{Open}

(Eh, not the most creative post, but I just wanted to get something up.)

[Tundra]

Kuar - Valerius - Pyry - Pyry - Despona/Remna

Valerius wasn't much interested in this human, it was obvious she wasn't of any evil intent. Her soul hadn't wandered from its destined path. So he allowed the questions, as long as she didn't ask millions like some seem to think was the best way to make friends with an Ancient. He shifted his weight looking to Kuar to answer the question she had asked. When kuar didn't immediately answer, or seemed to be having to keep Pyry in check Val sighed, a small flame escaping his mouth. Val thought for a few to try and figure how to tell her, but that entire time it was quiet.

Pyry, had gotten the bright idea that Kuar was playing with him, and had taken off again flapping about and periodically attacking Kuars hair playfully. It was a game to this small rune, until he managed to slam into a large liger and bruise the creature. The Liger roared and snapped its teeth, going for the rune who fled and hid behind Kuar. Unfortunately for Kuar..that caused him to become the target of the Ligers anger. The large feline rose to its paws and growled, its eyes filled with pure rage as it walked towards Kuar snarling.

Kuar, stood his ground, it was something that some would say was suicide. His eyes narrowed and he snapped his fingers a few times. This, caught Khalid's attention, who shot away from Val and Vel's location and to Kuars side. He quickly assessed the imminent fight and got in front of Kuar, wings spread and him screeching. The griffin looked massive, almost double the size of the liger with all his feathers raised in aggression. They seemed to roar and screech at each other, bringing in a crowd around them.

This entire time Val was thinking, and finally came up with an idea. He looked at Vel for a second then Kuar who he knew could handle his own. The man was a Nor after all, or raised one. Vel turned away and grabbed a notepad from a local booth, when the attendant went to ask him for baubles, she immediately said "Ah..yes..you can have it for free" and smiled innocently. Val walked back to Vel and waved his hand lightly, what seemed like magical dust floating off his fingers and swirling for a few on the paper. Soon, letters formed, and then words.

"Be at ease, I may not be able to speak, but I can sense your tension. I have no plans on harming anyone, if I have a choice in the situation" He smiled lightly, hoping perhaps this would calm this Avians nerves. He disliked the stigma Kuar sometimes gave him, but it helped make sure no one tried...asking questions of him. Once he was sure she had read the note on the paper, he willed the magic to form different words "The reason Kuar is here is out of curiosity, hes of Nor blood and used to hunt drakes. He has stopped that since ot bonding though. Can change the perspective you see the world from when you know..you will live to see its end eventually." Val almost seemed to get a slightly saddened look him his face at the last big of writing. But it was true, him and Kuar would live for eternity, and see the end of days.

{Tag! Your it! Val, Seraph}

[Saren]

Aileana, Eachbánn, Faol

Sunlight pierced the foliage above and cast dappled shadows on the ground, shifting ever so slightly as the soft breeze pushed gently at the branches above. A group of three were moving at a relaxed pace along the tree-shaded path, the gentle thuds of four paws and eight hooves nearly unnoticable on the beaten dirt track.
The fiery-haired girl atop the sleipnir was dosing peacefully, head drooped forwards and swaying slowly in time with the creature's movements. A leather satchel was slung across one shoulder, and her hands held the reins of her beast loosely, even in sleep.
Next to the eight-legged white beast was a great grey direwolf, nearly the height of the horse. His tread was light and his head hung low, eyelids half-shut. But the scent of something caused him to raise his head, pricking his ears, and he let out a low yiff. Aileana was awake instantly; she straightened in her saddle and rubbed the sleep from her eyes.
"We almost there, buddy?" she said to the direwolf, readjusting her grip on the reins. The sleipnir seemed to wake as well, tossing his head.
"Who's up for a run?" asked the girl in a sing-song voice. The direwolf jumped slightly, lifting his front paws off the ground, and barked, startling the sleipnir. Aileana laughed and shifted her satchel to the front of her. Leaning forward, she pressed the horse's side with her heels. "Go, Eachbánn!"
He whinnied and set off at a gallop, leaving the wolf in the dust. "Keep up, Faol!" cried Aileana, as the pair pulled away from him. He let out another playful yiff and opened up his stride, gaining on the two before drawing up next to them swiftly. Aileana laughed and spurred on the unicorn, and the race continued.
Finally the girl caught a glimpse of white stone, and thought she could hear music and laughter and the general raucous noise of a city. She spurred Eachbánn on again, and then the trees to the side of the path started to thin out, and then...
They rounded a corner, and another, and drew up in awe. The Alabaster City lay before them, walls towering high up into the air. Aileana was amazed. A constant stream of people and animals flowed into the gate, with the odd person or two leaving the city.
"I guess we're just in time," muttered Aileana. She wouldn't be participating in the Drake Trials; she excelled in revelry, not combat. However, the festivals surrounding the Trials were famous throughout Eldemore, and she hoped to watch some lucky youths form a bond with the fearsome beasts.
Pushing Eachbánn back into a trot, she made her way towards the stream of people entering the gate. As they went, she spotted an aggressive-looking black and orange rune drake and a stocky brown and gold one sizing each other up just outside the city wall. She gazed in awe. They weren't the first she'd seen, but she hadn't seen a drake for years, and she admired their powerful-looking muscles and odd body language as they communicated in the language of the drakes. Briefly the thought of trying out in the trials crossed her mind... But it passed just as quickly. She wasn't cut out for these beasts.

{mini tag; Anders, LunaHydreigon}

[KisaWolfz]

Kisa, Skijor, Lupos

Kisa listening to the boy as he spoke. Finally returning the stolen item. She patted Skijor on his neck, and the Sleipnir huffed. She hopped down his back and stood in front of the boy. "Instead of stealing why dont you try and make honest pay with work? Im sure you could easily find something for a little extra baubles. Even if it means to sweep a floor." She scratched the back of her neck. Lupos sat firmly, looking up at the two. Kisa smiled honestly, she didnt want to be rude now that the item was returned. To her he was just a person now. She pointed to his Serval, "Thats a fine creature you got there. I can never handle Servals, to feisty."

{Tags; SkieNight}

[Seraph]

Lavelle & Seraph

Vel suppressed a shiver that snaked up her spine, feeling as cold and stiff as ice even though the white hot sun glared down at her from the endless blue sky. She flinched at the sound of the furious liger's roar, and did not react in time to stop Sera from lunging after Khalid. Vel couldn't blame her edgy companion - she, too, was itching to release the anxiety that was coiled inside the pit of her stomach.

Giving a start as Val moved swiftly to grab a notepad, Vel watched in fascination as shimmering dust settled into curving letters on the creamy white pages of the notepad. As she read Val's reassuring words, she gradually began to relax the tension in her shoulders. Even so, her heart stuttered and dropped as she read the last sentence. Being an Avian, and an over-confident one at that, she disliked admitting the fact that, one day, she would pass away. Having the solemn Ancient tell her so added more salt to the wound, and she briefly shared his feeling of melancholy.

"Well." Vel's voice came out in a rasp, and she swallowed the lump in her throat. Val's gaze was faraway, and she knew this was her cue to leave. "I know this isn't going to be the last time I hear from you...Valerius." Vel tested out the Ancient's name on her tongue, feeling strangely cautious. Who knew a single word could be so powerful? "But I guess I'm going to be on my way, then. I hope you enjoy the Drake Trials."

With that, Vel dipped her head respectfully, called Sera back to her side, and melted away into the throng of the murmuring crowd. Once in the comfort of bustling tourists, she let out the breath she had been holding during the entire encounter with Val and Kuar. She was definitely shaken, and she took a moment to lean gently against Sera's shoulder to catch her breath.

{Small Tags: Tundra, Kuar and Val}

[Kalo]

As he stepped though the gateway and into Alabaster City, Tyrik couldn't help but gaze and his surroundings in wonderment. The warm sun's light highlighted each cobblestone that made up the streets. Flags of white, blue, and gold were scattered throughout the streets, which were packed with people and creatures of all races and species. Images of rune drakes were practically everywhere.
Ty turned his face for a moment to the sun, simply soaking in his surroundings.
"So, what do you think, Zeru?" he asked. The griffin beat his wings and sqawked excitedly. "Wait! Zeru-" Ty protested. Zeru stopped abruptly, and looked to the halfborn for explanation.
"There's too many people for that," Ty explained with a grin. It faded slightly as he glanced about, noticing a new birth that had been given around them. "Let's keep going. We shouldn't be calling too much attention to ourselves. You know how most people tend to feel about halfborns." Zeru's eye glinted mischievously.
"Don't-"
The griffin's chest puffed up as he sucked in a breath, ready to let loose the loudest screech he could muster. In a frantic effort to prevent the inevitable, Tyrik dove for Zeru, wrapping his arms around his bond's beak.
"What happened to not drawing ridiculous amounts of attention to ourselves?"
Zeru surrendered, releasing the breath through his nostrils in a huff.
"Thank you. Now how about we find some food?" Taking Zeru's lack of reaction as a yes, Ty kept going, with Zeru on his heels.
Without warning, Zeru shoved Ty playfully with his wing. Unfortunately, he used more force than intended, sending Ty sprawling sideways and crashing to the ground.
He groaned, pushing himself up off his back and halfway to a sitting position.
"Zeru!" He hissed. Too late. The griffin had wandered off, probably in an effort to place the source of some delicious smell.
Ty sighed. Then froze. A deep snarl sounded from somewhere very close. Slowly, carefully, he turned toward the source of the sound. It took a lot of effort not to jump at the sight of the furious liger standing above him. "Um... Hi?"
But it wasn't snarling at him. Ty carefully followed its line of vision to a blue griffin, its wings spread in defense.
Great. He'd just gotten caught in the he middle of a fight between an angry liger and a griffin.
{Tags: Tundra, Kuar}

[Saren]

Aileana, Eachbánn, Faol



Aileana tore her gaze away from the two drakes and spurred Eachbánn on. With a toss of his head, the sleipnir trotted forward, into the city.
The Celt girl was immediately struck by the noise. It washed over her, startling her for a second and causing her eyes to widen momentarily. She steeled herself mentally and signalled for Faol to stick close. The direwolf drew in, his side brushing Leana's leg.
The crowd parted slightly before the white sleipnir, but the occasional passer-by still bumped into the beast. Aileana made sure that her baubles were tucked safely in the inner pocket of her cloak, all too aware of tales of the city's thieves and pickpockets. But her she was held in awe by the vast number of people and creatures milling around the streets. Within a few minutes of entering the city, she must have seen at least four rune dragons, six direwolves, two ligers, and- was that a griffin?
An azure feathered beast was bristling, glaring at something Aileana couldn't quite see. Curious, she directed Eachbánn towards it. As they drew nearer, the crowd parted, and she could see a great liger snarling at the birdlike creature- and between the two, a boy.
He had fallen between the two, and obviously wasn't terribly pleased with his situation. Aileana couldn't see his face, but it was evident from his stillness that he didn't want to risk moving and provoking either beast.
She slid off of Eachbánn and signalled towards the boy. Faol obeyed instantly, leaping in to grab him by the collar and pull him sharply to safety. Aileana ruffled the wolf's ears, before leaning down and grabbing the boy's hand.
"Sorry if that was overly rough," she said in her broad Celtish accent as she pulled him to his feet. Smiling, she made eye contact with him, and faltered. His eyes were mismatched, his features too refined to be fully human... Was he...?
She cleared her throat, her smile becoming strained. Trust her to find most likely one of the only half-borns in the city; she knew opinion was vastly divided on the existence of these peoples, and having never met one before, she didn't know what to think.
Having been quiet for a moment too long, she spoke again. "I'm Aileana," she said politely, shaking his hand.

{tag; Kalo}
(I hope you don't mind your character being pulled out of harm's way! If this counts as powerplaying please let me know; I wasn't sure, because while I didn't control your character by saying "he did this", I did move him around a bit.)

[Kalo]

"Whoah!" Ty let out an involuntary yelp as something yanked on him, pulling his color up his neck, the rest of his shirt and vest in tow. The slits in the back for wings weren't quite long enough to accommodate the abrupt shift, forcing the extra appendages uncomfortably upward. Before he could fully establish what had happened, Tyrik found himself being pulled to his feet. As the owner of the hand looked at him, he figured out what had occurred. The dire wolf that stood obediently by the girl's side must have pulled him to safety. Ty unconsciously released the breath he'd been holding,
"Thank you," he replied, genuinely grateful. "You've gotten me out of quite the mess. Don't worry about how rough it may have been." Ty returned the smile and shake of the girl's hand - Aileana's, as he now knew her name to be - trying not to be bothered by the unease that seemed to have settled.
"I'm Tyrik Falco. Pleased to meet you, especially considering the circumstances," he added, glancing back toward the griffin and liger facing off. Looking back to his rescuer, he couldn't help but be fascinated by her strong accent. He'd never really met a celt before, but that and her wild red hair made it apparent that Aileana was from the celtlands.
Having been distracted from the disheveled state he was in, Ty's attention returned to it with a start.
You really aren't that great with first impressions, are you? he thought to himself, hurriedly readjusting his shirt and sword belt, which had gotten a bit twisted up during the rescue. His wings instinctively pinned themselves to his back. As much as he loved flying, Ty had never really felt comfortable with them around others, especially people he didn't know or had only just met.

{Tags: Saren, Aileana}
[Oh no, you're fine. I'm not entirely sure if it is or isn't considered power-playing, but I don't mind that little bit.]

[Saren]

Aileana, Eachbánn, Faol



Aileana smiled again at the young man, relaxing slightly. Well, she mused, he certainly didn't seem like the cold, distant being she'd always expected a half-born to be; it seemed her father's stories of the magicless runts of society were not entirely true, not were the grand tales of ruthless mercenaries told by the village witch. His gratitude was genuine, and so she responded in kind.
"Ach, any time," she laughed. "Not that I'm wishing any ill luck on you, mind. It's not quite the same, but drunken tavern fights are something I have to extract my friends from quite frequently."
The words sent an unexpected pang of homesickness through her as she thought of her close companions back in the Celtlands. It wasn't that they got drunk often; it was more that the Celtish people tended to be fairly rowdy drunks, at least in the area Aileana had grown up in, and one or two of her friends had developed quite the taste for alcohol.
"Nice to meet you," she said to Tyrik. "My surname is Kilbraith, if that matters at all." She knew that the name was influential where she came from, but doubted that anyone in the city would recognise the authority it held, and was therefore more comfortable sharing the name.
Her attention was caught by movement behind the boy. Great wings spread, then folded in, tucking in neatly to his back. Aileana gazed at them in awe, longing to reach out and brush her fingers across the feathers. But Eachbánn nickered and butted her shoulder with his head, and Faol placed a protective leg in front of Aileana's; a simple gesture, but one which carried weight. She once again looked the boy in the eye, and was struck by his height. He was a good half-foot taller than her, possibly more.
"I'm looking for accommodation in the city," she continued. "Do you happen to have any recommendations?"
{tag; Kalo, Tyrik}

[Kalo]

Ty laughed. "Well, I'm not drunk - I can promise you that. I just have a rowdy griffin for a bond." Upon saying this, he realized that the said griffin was still wandering off someplace else in the city. "Where is he, anyway?" he muttered to himself. Zeru was off getting himself into some other sort of trouble, no doubt. But Zeru was able to hold his own, Ty knew, and usually knew better than to create a ruckus. Oh, he certainly hoped that the griffin knew better.
"To be perfectly honest, surnames aren't of much important to me. Avians, yes, but me? No. Not unless its of importance to those around me," he chuckled a bit. "That's the only reason I use my own, really."
Talk of surnames brought thoughts of Avians. Real Avians, not just half-Avians. And of Ty's mother. She'd always insisted that he take his father's last name. That the warrior house's name might be useful at some point. He never thought so, but he didn't want to argue with her.
Wait - accommodation? Ty winced. "Right. I'd actually not really thought about that. Um..." he rubbed the back of his head, glancing about him. It had become a common habit for him. Awkward situation? Unsure of what to do? Embarrassed? Somehow, his right hand always found its way to the same place.
Just then, Zeru came back, trotting up to the pair, dire, and sleipner, bumping Tyrik's arm with his beak.
"Zeru? What have you been up to? I could've used your help back there," Ty said, gesturing to the standoff. Zeru snapped his beak a few times in response, sitting down and running a beak through his brown feathers as if nothing had happened. Ty just sighed and rolled his eyes before returning his attention to Aileana. "Sorry, I don't really have any recommendations. But I'd be happy to ask around or help you find someplace."

{Tags: Saren, Aileana}