|
Post by Venus on Jun 6, 2009 17:10:29 GMT -5
Tiamat grinned, eyes sparkling with ill-concealed excitement and joy. "Well, if you want to get technical, I finished it a few days ago. But I needed to know that Thanthero was on his way before I could safely say that it might happen." She sobered a little, tail flicking in the short grass of the wood. "It is still a 'might', but I'm more certain now than I was before. So I wouldn't say amazing yet!"
Aisling glanced over. ~Really? I can't see anyone... is it a spirit, Aleiko? I'm all interested now!~ Her final bird was caught, and she tumbled to the ground with a thump. ~Breakfast time!~
|
|
|
Post by Fury on Jun 6, 2009 17:18:10 GMT -5
~Yep. Spirit. From what I can see he's an Eastern like me but much bigger... and with more of a wolf-ish sort of face rather than just being a dragon stretched out like I am. You'll see I suppose.~ Aleiko replied with a nod.
Tatsu smiled. "A 'maybe' is better than a 'no' as it has been all these years, Tia. I'm very pleased and quite grateful. I owe you one especially if it works."
|
|
|
Post by Venus on Jun 6, 2009 17:23:14 GMT -5
~Ah...~ Aisling nodded. ~Well, I'll have to wait until he decides to show himself, I suppose. I thought I could sense something, but I'm not close enough to tell properly.~ She munched cheerfully on the birds. ~Do we go over?~
Tiamat waved him off with a flick of her tail. "Hey, you owe me nothing. Service rendered for a friend. No charge, no debt, no obligation. Consider it payment for putting up with me for all these years, hm?"
"If he gets a body, I'll be interested to see what you come up with to pay me, dear Tia."
A familiar aura washed across the clearing as Thanthero revealed himself, magic falling away from the outline of the black dragon leaning lazily against a tree.
Aisling felt danger rippling along her spine, instinct demanding that she abandon her breakfast and jump to her feet. ~Company! This may as well be a house party!~
|
|
|
Post by Fury on Jun 6, 2009 17:37:23 GMT -5
~Yeah I think we should. Breakfast is pretty much interrupted anyway. ...And I believe Tiamat should introduce us to her guests. They seem interesting from what I can sense.~ Aleiko agreed.
Tatsu let out a laugh. "Welcome Thanthero. Still alive and well I see... and grumpy of course. Nice to see you again my friend."
Landing nearby, Aleiko tilted his own head. "Leaving us out?" he asked, meaning Aisling and himself.
|
|
|
Post by Venus on Jun 6, 2009 17:43:29 GMT -5
Tiamat smiled in greeting to their old friend. "Hello, Than. You're well?"
The black dragon snorted. "As ever. Since when am I not?"
"Well, I could think of a few occasions..."
"That question was rhetorical."
Aisling gulped down the last of her breakfast and, feeling refreshed, followed Aleiko across the clearing. "Yeah - we don't like to be out of the know, you see."
Tiamat's smile grew at the entrance of her apprentices. "Well, then. Tatsu, Thanthero, these are my two apprentices - Aleiko and Aisling. You two, the grumpy black idiot over there is Thanthero and the spirit to my right is Tatsu."
The jade dragoness dipped her head respectfully. "Nice to meet you!"
|
|
|
Post by Fury on Jun 6, 2009 17:50:25 GMT -5
Aleiko did the same but a little more awkwardly simply due to the length of his body and neck. "Pleased to meet you." He could not help but look at Tatsu the most now that he was close up to the other Eastern. Wow... he thought.
"Nice to meet you two as well!" Tatsu said cheerfully. It was nice to see Tiamat with some apprentices.
|
|
|
Post by Venus on Jun 6, 2009 17:55:40 GMT -5
Thanthero snorted. "Grumpy black idiot? How nicely you treat someone who has just gone to the limits of life and death to do you a favour?" His eyes glittered. Tiamat looked a little sheepish.
"Fair enough. Thanks Than. I'm assuming you managed it?"
His flat look said everything, from 'as if I could fail' all the way to 'who do you think I am, a weakling?'.
Aisling observed the interaction between the three with a smile, feeling a little lost. "Erm..."
Thanthero's attention switched to her, and she found herself captured by a pair of immovable yellow eyes.
"So, you have apprentices, Tiamat?" He smirked. "Not surprised." To Aisling and Aleiko, he said; "Make sure you torment her as much as possible. It's about time she had another terror to cope with. I'm not around enough to do the job properly."
|
|
|
Post by Fury on Jun 6, 2009 18:00:33 GMT -5
The brown Eastern just shook his head. "Never. That'd be cruel, Thanthero," he replied as he tested out trying to pronounce Than's name.
Tatsu chuckled, "It seems they won't be swayed Thanthero. You're not going to get them to torture her. Too bad on your part. You've gotten less persuasive it seems."
There was a jingling sound as Aleiko moved his leg. The bracelet clinking against his scales made an almost chiming noise. He was nervous around all these new dragons, his shy personality starting to take over again.
|
|
|
Post by Venus on Jun 6, 2009 18:07:04 GMT -5
Thanthero smirked, flaring his aura enough to make his scales crackle.
"Oh, I'm still as persuasive as ever, Tatsu."
Tiamat sighed. "Now now. Stop trying to influence my apprentices."
Aisling, brow furrowed, was trying to judge the power levels of the newcomers compared to Tiamat - and was failing miserably. They were a little intimidating, but still...
"You'd never turn us against Tiamat." Her statement was spoken cooly, but a wall of pride sat behind it.
Thanthero raised a careless brow and was beginning to smirk again, but this time said mentor stepped in, her own magic brushing like bells on the air.
"I did say stop, didn't I? Come on, you two have studying to do. We have a spell to cast."
|
|
|
Post by Fury on Jun 6, 2009 18:11:26 GMT -5
"We do?" Aleiko asked. He perked up noticeably. "What sort?" he hoped it was to his talents this time. True it was useful to know all manner of magic but it was better if he could channel it to what he was best at.
Tatsu rolled his eyes. "Thanthero, I'd hit you but you wouldn't feel it."
|
|
|
Post by Venus on Jun 6, 2009 18:16:16 GMT -5
Tiamat smiled.
"A new one. I finished it a few days ago - we're returning Tatsu to his body."
Aisling blinked.
"So that was the bang last week? I wondered where all the smoke came from..."
Tiamat looked a little sheepish, claws reflexively going to finger the singed patch of fur, concealed by one of the rosaries braided into her mane. "Yeah. That would be it."
Thanthero laughed heartily at this. Tiamat mock-glared.
"Enough of that. Come on in, mind the slope." The dragoness disappeared into her complex Earth with a flick of her plumed tail, descending into the ranging tunnels of her home.
Aisling eagerly followed, looking forward to seeing one of their mentor's new spells.
Thanthero rolled his eyes, but turned back to Tatsu before entering. "Hey - you can hit me as much as you want once we've got you back into that body of yours."
|
|
|
Post by Fury on Jun 6, 2009 18:19:58 GMT -5
Tatsu flashed a grin, his illumated form following them all into the cave. Even with the magic lights inside he still was the source of most of the light somehow.
Distracted every once in a while by movements of lesser spirits, Aleiko looked around. "So...how is this going to work, Tiamat? Tatsu's long been separate from his body, right?"
|
|
|
Post by Venus on Jun 6, 2009 18:23:09 GMT -5
Tiamat nodded an affirmative, reinforcing the light spells as she went. "A few centuries now, if I'm right. But that's why Thanthero's here. You could say he has an affinity for death."
Curious, Aisling turned to look at the dragon; those yellow eyes were still eerie, still piercing, and she turned away quickly, catching up with the comforting presences of Aleiko and Tiamat. Something about that dragon was just wrong.
|
|
|
Post by Fury on Jun 6, 2009 18:30:16 GMT -5
"...But wouldn't his body be gone by now? Decomposed?" Aleiko asked. He was quite obviously confused. A lot.
"Not with Than. You'll see," Tatsu confirmed.
|
|
|
Post by Venus on Jun 6, 2009 18:33:30 GMT -5
Thanthero's fangs were bright in the half-light, smirk spreading.
"I'd say the body is the last thing you'll need to worry about. The magic? Well, that's another thing entirely."
Tiamat's spine was straight. "I beg to differ, Than. This spell has been checked over entirely more than five times since it was finished."
Aisling blinked. "Five? But normally, you only check once?"
"This is no ordinary spell, Aisling."
The green dragoness grinned. Now this, this was exciting.
|
|