In the Name of Science!

DragonSong · May 21, 2018, 09:20:39 AM

"Um, well..." Allaeya looked down at herself, then up at him. "You may want to stand back a bit," she advised, turning in a slow circle to take stock. There was plenty of room for her to shift, but it was a rather...explosive experience. She didn't want to hurt him accidentallly.

Kingfisher · May 21, 2018, 07:38:23 PM

Samuel simply shrugged. Turning, the assassin padded toward the treeline. His black arm coiled, biting into a limb and slinging him to a perch. Safely out of the way, he turned back to the clearing, his arm returning to a more human form. "When you're ready," he called.

DragonSong · June 01, 2018, 12:20:45 PM

Ally nodded, then took a breath and closed her eyes.

This was always the more difficult part-- changing on purpose. She had to reach deep into that core of power in the very center of her self, that spark she could only really feel half the time.

It took several moments before anything seemed to be happening, and when it did it was very slight, just a shimmer around her form, like a slight heat haze. Then, all at once, something snapped.

Her body froze, back arched, form twisted, and exploded out into scales and wings, claws sinking into the earth and a low, thrumming growl vibrating through her chest.

Kingfisher · June 04, 2018, 06:37:20 PM

Samuel offered an impressed whistle at the alchemist's sudden and very flashy transformation. Slinging down from the tree, he entered the clearing. "That truly is a frightening sight." Stepping close to Ally, the placed a hand on the dragon's claw. He noticed it had taken a bit of time to activate her transition but held back on commentary.

Now that he was at Alleaya's side, the assassin inquired, "Any preferances on where to extract the ingredients?" His demonic arm was already warping into a tool he assumed they might need as he extracted containers with his left...

DragonSong · June 12, 2018, 02:21:35 AM

The dragoness panted gently, head hung low as he approached. "If you think...that's scary," she muttered wryly, "try doing it." Gods, she hated this part. She ached all over. Forcing a change never seemed to sit right.

At the mention of "ingredients" her eyes snapped up and she shuffled a few steps away instinctively, eyeing his arm. "We-well we need scales and b-blood and probably some claw shavings..." She swallowed. This was not going to be pleasant.

Sighing, she dropped her head again and tilted it to the side slightly. "If you nick that bit of skin under my cheek it should be easiest. My hide's thinner there, but I won't loose blood too quickly."

Kingfisher · June 17, 2018, 10:57:10 AM

Understanding his role, Samuel reshaped his hand into a narrow stiletto, pricking the dragon where she had indicated. A swell of dark blood oozed from the wound; he had hit the vein as intended and from the gentle flow, the assassin filled a pair of opaque vials. First ingredient: check.

Next was the claws. The man's black hand reshapped into a pair of sturdy shears as he shifted towards Alleaya's extremity. The apparently metallic scrape of shears as he went to work. As he started, Samuel tried small talk. "You know," he began, trying to carve into the hardened material. "In most lizards, I've found that claws, scales and feathers are all functionally interchangeable. If I can I can get this off, we should be good." Of course, that depended on whether his demonic blades could manage...

DragonSong · June 18, 2018, 12:07:52 AM

Ally snorted and resisted the urge to jerk back from him. It was not a comfortable sensation. She winced, screwing her eyes shut and digging her talons into the earth and an effort to resist the urge to retract them. The ear-grating scrape of metal over claws made her grit her jaw.

"Just-- hurry up, please," she whimpered.

Kingfisher · June 24, 2018, 11:23:23 AM

Samuel did as asked, clipping off pieces of material until he seemed to have enough and slipping them into a pouch. "That should do it..." he said, stepping back. Looking up toward the dragoness, the assassin said, "I think that should do it. I think you...can..."

Samuel stopped speaking for a moment, peering over his shoulder. "You know, you guys aren't as sneaky as you thing you are." The demonic arm seemed to quiver as the abomination shifted to face the woods. "You might as well come out of hiding."

Around half a dozen goons crept out of the tree line into the light. They were all armed with clubs and swords. One well dressed man in a robe carrying a two handed saber seemed to be the leader. He addressed the crafter. "Sorry to show up uninvited," he said in the cocky tone of a man who thought he had answers. "I had heard there was a dragon in town and I just had to see it with my own eyes."

"You mean you thought you might be able to capture a shapeshifting dragon in a weaker form. Sell her into slavery for parts." They were not questions, but rather clarifications for Alleaya's benefit. "Maybe catch me off guard so I wouldn't interfere?"

The lead thug clicked his tongue, clearly annoyed at being called out. "Tell you what, you help us catch this beasty, we'll cut you in on the-"

"Sale, yeah," Samuel interrupted, pleased as he saw the leader start to turn red. Too easy. "Here's the thing. You guys are clearly amateurs. You come here hoping to catch a dragon-slash-human alive with clubs and swords. Your plan 'B' is to deal with a man you originally intended to kill. What's plan C; six morons versus a fire breathing dragon?"

"I noticed you didn't include yourself in that equation," the leader said. So he was not a total fool. The boss came closer, continuing. "Seems a waste to die over such a small thing as some lizard. I've seen your handiwork. With you, we could capture it and make a killing at auction. What d'you say?" He offered Samuel a hand, thinking he had the assassin.

Samuel glanced sadly back at the dragon, wondering how she would react to his decision. Clasping his forearm and shaking it. Hook, line and sinker. The demon twisted, moving up with the other man's arm. There was sound akin to branches under food as his elbow snapped the wrong direction..."Oops." Turn to Alleaya, the assassin asked, "You think that's all the warning they'll need?" He firgure he knew the girl's answer but really, he was just giving the others a chance to run.

DragonSong · June 25, 2018, 04:52:13 PM

The dragon was had gone very still and quiet, eyes wide as she watched the exchange. She hadn’t reacted much when Samuel seemed ready to betray her, but the crunch of breaking bone was enough to draw an instinctive wince, and she skittered back a step.

Rather than answer her companion, she tried to crane her head up and shouted, “Leave us alone!”

Well, at least she meant to shout. It came out as more of a squeak, which was exponentially more ridiculous in her current form than it would have been otherwise.

Kingfisher · July 05, 2018, 10:09:18 PM

The dichotomy of the pair was striking. The small assassin stood confident, intimidating while the much larger beast whimpered like the scared little girl she was. It left the assailants in an awkward position, unsure how to move forward. A handful advance, others started to retreat.

A quarrel arced from the treeline, one of the goons clearly thinking they had the advantage. The serpenting arm shivered, taking the form of a broad triangular shield as the projectile hit. Samuel winced, feeling the sting as the bolt pierced demonic flesh. "Is that it," he mocked. But as confident as he acted something was off. The other thugs seemed just as shocked by the stocky shaft.

That was when the pain began to build. Threads of pale light began to crawl outward from the wound, demon curling in rising agony. The demonlord had never had the misfortune of this sort of encounter, but he knew what had hit him: only a blessed arrowhead could hurt this much. He would not be able to fight effectively. Shifting back, Samuel whispered, "Can you fly us out of here?" It seemed the only way out as the other goons recovered from their shock. It seemed the crossbowman was not a part of the group but that raised the question: Who could afford to waste divine arrowheads on him?

DragonSong · July 10, 2018, 05:26:16 AM

"Y-yes." The dragoness nodded quickly and lowered herself slightly so the assassin could climb onto her back. "Hurry, hurry," she breathed, shivering as she stared at their attackers.

Kingfisher · July 11, 2018, 08:43:16 PM

The ripple in the black arm cracked the quarrel, leaving it in the chared dirt. Samuel paid it little mind as he shifted toward the dragoness. Gritting through the pain he heaved himself over Alleaya's scaled shoulders, bracing for her inevitable take off.

All the while, the other goons advanced, pressing their advantage...

DragonSong · July 13, 2018, 08:01:18 PM

Ally craned her neck back to nudge Samuel into place on her back. "Hold on," she urged, then surged to her feet and bounded forward, snapping her wings out and beating them twice to force them into the air.

Kingfisher · July 17, 2018, 07:19:54 PM

The assassin wordlessly did as he was commanded. Gripping onto one to the dragon's spines, he clung as her movement forced him against her scales. The thugs who had tried to rush in were swept backward, toppled by the air hurled against them. All the while, Samuel did his best to ignore the heat pulsing through his "arm."

DragonSong · July 22, 2018, 04:27:07 AM

"Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear dear dear..." Ally's mumbled monologue continued well into their ascent, and when it faded it was only replaced by panicked questions. "Are they following? What do we do? Are you alright? Your arm feels weird, it's hot against my scales-- oh gods do you need healing? Medicine?"

Kingfisher · July 23, 2018, 02:04:44 PM

"Just," Samuel hissed. "Just put distance between them and us. We can land and then be away before they can find us." The thugs were barely a footnote in his concerns. The demon hunter was the real danger. He had not even heard them, likely using the mob as cover.

The pain was still intense, enough to blur his vision as he looked for a place to land. The quarrel head must have been some reforged artifact. Whatever 'celestial' magic lingered within was keeping his familiar unstable. It would have to be cut out soon...

Finding a likely spot at the edge of the treeline, the assassin pointed. "Land there and shift back. Then we can find cover..."

DragonSong · July 27, 2018, 10:30:53 PM

She nodded, banking toward the small clearing he'd indicated and spiraling into a slow, careful landing.

She decided not to point out the obvious problem-- she wasn't always able to change back at will.

Kingfisher · August 02, 2018, 02:05:37 PM

When the pair hit the ground, Samuel spilled off the dragon. Gritting his teeth, he looked about; the pursuers were thankfully absent as the assassin pressed himself against a tree. Turning back to Allaeya, he tried to focus his vision. He had a sense of where her transformation came from, given their first meeting. Lucking up at her scaled face, he said, "Close your eyes and focus on my voice." Despite his pain, Samuel managed to steady his voice. Softening, he continued. "Think back. Remember a moment you felt safe and secure."

Now came the odd part. "Do you remember a smell?" he asked. "Perhaps something from your mother? Find that scent and hold onto it; follow it..." The assassin waivered, slumping slightly against the tree. He knew by experience that smells were evocative of memory and emotion but the pain was making it hard to focus on speech.

DragonSong · August 11, 2018, 05:09:37 PM

Ally took a breath, then did as he said, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath.

A smell? She thought back, trying to find a memory, something, anything.

Lavender.

Another breath. Was something happening? She fidgeted, unable to contain her anxious energy. With a huff, her eyes opened and she shook her head, irritated. "I'm sorry, I-- Samuel?" Concern quickly colored her tone. "Oh no. Are-- are you alright?"

Kingfisher · August 14, 2018, 07:26:16 PM

"I really thought that would work..." Samuel muttered, largely to himself. The pain in his familiar was still building but with Alleaya trapped in her dragonic form, there was no good wah to return to Zantaric. The mage retreated inward, focused on his next problem. He found a fallen branch nearby and quickly took hold with his pale human hand. He would have prefered a knife but at the moment, he had to make do.

The dull wood skewer pressed hard against black flesh as a dozen pained eyes opened to glare at their master. A shuddering claw took shape to menace the demonlord but quickly deformed into writhing tentacles, and then a thick, shapeless fluid. Samuel was screaming now, makeshift blade going nowhere as the demon rebelled.

"I really thought that...would work..." he repeated, casting the stick away. One last option came to mind. Looking to the dragon, he hissed, "You...I need you to cut it out. Press your talon against my arm and cut into it." Sweat beaded on his furrowed brow as he tried to stay conscious. "I can get the head out and...then...hide us..." the assassin explained weakly.