[IC] DragonFall - The Leviathans Are Coming

[Leoven]

《 Deep in Stormholme Castle 》

---

The chamber is cold and damp, the careful steps of its inhabitants echoing against its stone brick walls. A low and rusty chandelier hangs above a sturdy mahogany table, bathing the yellowed map of Alona in a warm orange glow. Looming above the paper is a young woman, the hood of her robe pulled down - unlike her three other companions - to allow her features to shine. Any who even glances in her direction can easily determine who she is. In the safety of their chosen meeting room, hidden deep within the labyrinthian tunnels that run within the Stormholme Castle, Princess Naeva of Sagewick has no need to hide her identity.

"You are certain of their identities?" she asks as she looks up from the map, five different markers placed on specific locations.

The taller of her three companions nods and steps forward. He pulls off his hood and reveals the face of a middle-aged man, his face marred by scars gathered from years of service for the Sagewick military. He is Ser Tiborr, retired general of the Black Army. "Yes, Princess. We have already contacted those we have identified." He points a gloved finger towards the markers on the map as he enumerates the Listeners their Circle has uncovered. "Ser Melchior's identity as the Sagewick Listener has never been secret to us, and we have already informed them of your intentions. We have sent a message to them, and are certain they will arrive momentarily.

"Similarly, a message has also been sent to Miss Lila Suda," he pauses then and nods towards the other presence in the room. They step forward and remove the hood to reveal hair the colour of a roaring fire and a spark of youthful ferocity shining in their eyes. Ulrid, Wildeshore-born, is a trader that has made their mark in the halls of Stormholme Castle as both Ser Tiborr's trusted spy and Princess Naeva's childhood friend. "I shall be meeting with the Blade Dancer soon. I will inform the Circle of any developments." Without waiting for any more, they slink to the shadows and disappear, possibly to head to the meeting they'd mentioned.

Ser Tiborr nods, and continues to the three other markers left on the map. "Messages have been sent to the other three Listeners. The Knight of Shdowpine has proved difficult to contact, but we are certain that during the last incident at the Borderlands, our scouts were able to send the letter across. Whether she accepts and meets Pyrite at Veilroad at noon is to be determined," The fourth member of the Circle is absent, already stationed at the area where ze would meet with the Shdowpine Listener. Ser Tiborr continues on, "The Captain is as difficult to find as the Erihollow Listener, but luckily for us, ze was the one to contact us. It seems that the Captain has taken it upon Hirself to hunt down the Erihollow Listener and will contact us soon. As for the Woodwyn Listener," and at that, Ser Tiborr scowls, "Wish has uncovered his identity."

The figure that had been staying back for the entirety of the meeting takes this as her opportunity to give her input. In a fluorish, her hood is off to reveal light green hair and intricate runes covering every inch of her brown skin. "His name's Selwyn. Small fellow, but a damn good healer," Wish relates with a dark chuckle, "And we all know what Woodwyn does to its good healers. He's in there, somewhere. Been killing myself tryna comb him out, but it ain't easy." She doesn't wait for Ser Tiborr or Princess Naeva to speak. "Yeah, I know. Try harder. You got it." She trudges away with a playful role of her eyes, and soon the chamber falls back to silence.

"And for Mallowater and Havenborough?" Princess Naeva finds herself asking, to which Ser Tiborr answers with a shake of his head. Princess Naeva breathes a sigh, churning over the information she's been presented with. It's been two weeks since the first attack and the Leviathans have since been suspiciously quiet. There are reports of the gargantuan creatures looming and lurking in the south, but other than being intimidating, they have done nothing. In a way, Naeva is thankful. Their silence has allowed her and her Circle to seek out the Listeners, and that has certainly proved challenging. She only hopes that she's right with assembling these Listeners; after all, a somewhat prophetic dream is not much to go on.

Ser Tiborr watches, and the two of them wait.

@Aristo

《 Elsewhere... 》

---

for Lila

The day is nearing noon as Ulrid waits in the docks of Old Haven, a bustling pier town located to the west of Stormholme Hold. Their journey to the town is short and swift, due to the close proximity, and they arrive well before any ship of importance has docked. The message to the Blade Dancer had been, like all the other messages, a call of urgency. Ulrid waits by the docks, sans the robe and dressed in Wildeshore finery, flanked from both sides by heavily armoured guards bearing the Sagewick insignia.

@13org

for Yvette

The Veilroad is set in the middle of a thick forest that sits in the Borderlands known for its beautiful scenery. The area is full of Mirrorwoods, a special kind of flora with leaves that resemble tiny mirrors. Their presence in the Veilroad proves it to be quite the experience to traverse, due to its allure and the inherent danger it possesses. One could, after all, easily fall for the illusions provided by the mysterious trees. The Veilroad had been set as a way to carefully cross the forest, and has been used as a no-man's land in the Sagewick-Shdowpine war. Pyrite, the hood of hir robes still pulled up, sits comfortable by the side of the road, watching and waiting. Some refugees have passed hir, but no sign of the Shdowpine Listener still.

@Rune_Alchemist

for Selwyn

Wish pens another letter and ties it to the claw of her favoured crow. The bird returns to her every day, the letters she has sent delivered. She can only hope that it has found its recipient well. Her horse is set for another journey to Woodwyn's desolate plains, to search for any of the hidden villages, and she prepares for another failure. The journey to Woodwyn would take her all day, and she just hopes that her crow fares better in the hunt than her.

@Jacobite

for Lovedaia

The Captain is a strange sight to see at the edges of the marsh. Hir clothes are brightly coloured, unlike the drab grey the people of Erihollow favour. The mask on hir face today has lips curled up in a bright smile, but none know if the face underneath shares the gesture. And so ze waits, silent and unmovable. Ze knows, for some reason ze does, that the Listener can be found here. Ze knows he only has to wait, and so ze does.

@fishguy

[Rune_Alchemist]

~Yvette & Ciervia~

@Leoven

High above the frozen lands of Shdowpine, a shadow blocked out what little sun might be present, moving quickly across the landscape. If any curious soul happened to look up, they would see quite the terrifying sight. A frost dragon, soaring high above the land with the swiftness of some purpose as it headed to its destination. Thankfully for the humans, said dragon in question was busy and had a destination they had to reach before they arrived late. Their destination? The Mirrorwoods.

As they arrived about half a mile away from the edge of the forest, the dragon descended towards the ground. The massive beast landed with a heavy thud, a thick cloud of snow kicking up from its wings as it landed. It lowered its head to the ground, and a sole human jumped off of the dragons neck, not seeming too bothered by the flight at all. In her hands, rested a heavy, well made halberd and a sword strapped to her belt.

"Walkin' the rest of the way, Ciervia." Yvette said, looking up to the dragon who nodded in response. The dragon kicked up another cloud of snow with its wings. Yvette would have rolled her eyes at the display, had she not had to brace herself from being knocked over by the gust. By the time it was over the dragon was gone, or at least had taken a different form. Where the dragon had stood, a feminine white-haired dragon stood a few paces in front of her in his usual form that most would easily mistake for that of a female. Whether it was or not, Yvette had yet to figure since he never quite gave a straight answer. He was wearing the typical blue dress he always wore. It was a simple thing, that fell to his knees but still managed to have an air of elegance to it. Simple shoes seemingly made of crystal clear ice donned the dragons slender feet, not seeming to have them be too unstable or difficult to walk in.

"Always got a flair for the dramatic entrances, huh?" She said, removing her helmet briefly and emptying out a few specks of snow before replacing it. Ciervia merely brushed a loose snowflake that had so dared to trespass on the dragons shoulder.

"Entrances always leave one with a lasting impression. One needs to make it grand. I do not expect you to understand, though, my little human."

"Says the short one." Yvette said, starting to walk towards the Mirrorwood.

"Yvette, that tongue of yours is going to get you into more trouble one of these days that I can't keep you out of."

"Pft, You'd just make more trouble anyways. Might as well just kill me now."

"Oh please." With a displeased snarl, the dragon glared at Yvette. "If there's anyone constantly getting in trouble, its you strutting around The Meadow like you own the place. You should at least consider behaving a bit more...inconspicuous. One of these days those fools are actually going to try something regardless."

"Ciervia...that...almost sounds like concern?" Yvette's voice indicated fake shock and amusement.

"Of course. Where else would I get delicious food from? Those fools at the church can't cook to save their lives." The dragon scoffed. "...suppose I could always eat them, though."

With the small bit of banter between Listener and dragon done, the two focused on their destination.

The Mirrorwoods. It was one of the most interesting, beautiful, and dangerous places in all of Shdowpine as far as Yvette was concerned. Beautiful, because of the foliage. She hadn't seen any anywhere else, and she had to always wonder how the plants grew that way. Ciervia said something about it once, but she hadn't really been paying attention, and even if she did she doubted she'd understand it completely. Things like fancy magic and academics just wasn't for her, really. Always went right over her head in some form. She could understand the basic concepts, but anything else just made her head spin.

Her boots caused the ground beneath her feet to softly crunch as she walked down The Veilroad. One of the safest routes through the wood. Her gait was a relaxed one, not seeming to care too much about their destination - or at least not in any amount of hurry despite the fact they were probably a tiny bit late at this point. Yvette cast a glance to Ciervia, who was currently doing his best to freeze the ground more than it already was with a glare.

"I heard that if you scowl all the time, your face will eventually get stuck like that." The dragon huffed, turning his head towards Yvette from where he had been studying the foliage of the forest.

"Hmph, it’s just when you said you were meeting someone...I imagined something a bit...different than trudging through a forest where narcissists come to admire themselves." The dragons voice was fairly neutral in tone, if another listener was around to hear it sounding either male or female.

"Oh, well, you should fit right in here then." Yvette mused in a friendly tone.

"Tsk," The dragon clicked his tongue, dismissively huffing at the notion. "Most narcissists do not have any foundation for their arrogance. I, am a dragon, the most beautiful and powerful of dragons and therefore do not need constant reassurance that I am in fact, better than everyone else."

"Oho, that so?" Yvette chuckled from under her helmet. "Was it that same arrogance the one givin' me compliments about my looks and tryin to pry a third plate of food outta me an hour ago? Also made us late, I might add." At this, the dragons gaze drifted to the side, not looking at Yvette.

"I-I was merely giving you praise for being a good little human." The dragon replied in a not so honest fashion. "I give praise where it is due. You're cooking is enough to charm even the most dangerous of beasts."

"Yeah, if they're a glutton and like inhaling their food faster than a pig does."

"I-I most certainly did not inhale it!"

"Nothing about the pig comment?" At this the dragon growled, moving in front of Yvette. He bared his fangs, sharp draconic teeth replacing what was human moments before. Cold blue eyes glared up at Yvette.

“I am most certainly not a pig either! You forget who you are speaking too, Yvette!” The latter part of the sentence was said with obvious venom, as a snarl escaping the lips of the dragon. Yvette stopped walking, staring down at the dragon.

“No, I know exactly who you are,”

“Then I demand groveling and food this-”

“You’re frost-butt, the king of frostiness and royal spoilsport of anything fun.” She gave the smaller humanoid form a brief pat on the head and moved past the dragon. Ciervia stood there frozen, cold, righteous anger boiling under a calm visage. He turned his head towards the knight walked away from him. If it had been anyone else…they’d already be dead. But Yvette? Well, the anger subsided almost immediately. For whatever reason, he could never bring himself to be angry at the human despite her disrespect and foolish behavior. Instead, he growled silently to himself and walked after Yvette.

…being pet on the head was surprisingly nice every now and then.

“Yvette-”

“Shush.”

“Did you just shush me?” The dragon seemed absolutely shocked at the notion, though it wasn’t the first time it happened and wouldn’t be the last.

“We’re here.” The dragon turned his gaze towards where Yvette was walking.

“Hm?...I see. Well. Let us get this over with. I tire of walking.”

“Well if you're lucky this can be over quickly.” Ciervia and her both decided it'd be a good idea to at least walk the rest of the way after flying. After all, while she didn't have many problems with the church...they'd definitely have a problem with this. It was best to have a bit of...discretion on this matter. She didn't think anything would come of it, but she didn't want to potentially offend all of Shdowpine. Again. Because she hasn't done that a hundred times before. “Come on. I want to get this over with before someone gets uppity that I'm nowhere to be found. Whoever we're meeting should be around here somewhere.” Ciervia nodded, remaining silent.

"Keep an eye out for them...or any sort of suspicious people." Yvette said. Ciervia nodded. One wouldn't think much of a woman in a blue dress would be much of a threat to anyone. It was half there reason Ciervia took the appearance he did.

[Jacobite]

.

[13org]

Lila & Jörmungandr

In a big hall decorated with all sort of expensive furniture, sumptuous carpets and curtains, two lone figures were the only ones inside. A beautiful maiden, wearing a black dress and a young man wearing a hunter's jacket. The scene was truly unusual. The two figures were almost the polar opposite.
The young man had a wild aura on him, sharp and penetrating eyes that made others tremble when met his gaze. His movements were quick and calculated, almost like he was always hunting.
The maiden had serene and tranquil eyes, passing a noble, pure and regal aura. Every movement she made was filled with grace, her steps were light and beautiful, elegant.

Their steps were the only sounds on the hall.

"Like this?" The young man asked to the maiden.

"No, put your hands lower, on my waist." she answered, gently grabbing his hand and putting it on her waist.
"No! Not like that! Don't be afraid of getting near your partner. Don't touch me like I'm made of porcelain, get a firm grip, feel my muscles while I'm moving, hold me so you can move together with me. While we are dancing, we need to be literally one with our partners." she said, getting closer to the young man, who was visibly flustered by the situation.

"But other nobles and merchants sometimes do it differently, I don't get it..." he said, trying to understand the dance.

"If you really want to dance, then you want to be close to your partner, both physically and mentally, synchronized."
"Ok, you'll take the lead this time." she said, putting her left hand around the young man's shoulder, embracing him.
"Look into my eyes, not to your feet. You are leading the dance, make your move and feel my body responding to it." the woman said.
"Yes! Perfect! Now lets try something new, We will move a little bit faster, turning always to the right." she said as the two started to dance faster.

At the beginning the young man had some difficulties with the smooth, but agile turns, but when he got the rhythm of it he started alternating with the woman as they used their bodies to assist with the half turns as they danced through the hall.

With a giggle and a big smile, the woman looked to the man
"Jör, I didn't knew you could dance like this. And all it took was some small tips I gave you!" she said laughing as they danced through the hall. You could see in her eyes that she was genuinely happy.

"I wont lie to you Lila, it was a little hard on the beginning, especially getting used on being so close to each other..." he said, looking at her, smiling.

"I can teach you so many more dances, if you want, of course. I would love to have an experienced pair to dance sometimes. Talking about that, why is the great and ferocious Jörmungandr suddenly interested on dances?" she asked, as they continued dancing through the hall.

"Well... I know you always loved to dance... It was how we met, remember? As your partner, I think I should be able to accompany you on dances as well, so you won't need to search for others..." he said to her.

"Jör, are you... jealous?" She asked with a mischievous smile on her face.
"You are!! You are really jealous about me dancing with other men, aren't you?" she said laughing.

"Hmpf... If those humans can do it, I can surely do it better than them. And you shouldn't spend more time with other men than with me, your partner."

"You are so cute when you are jealous!" she said smiling to him.
"Don't worry my little jealous lizard, you are very special to me and you know it." she said, giving him a small kiss on the cheek.

"J-just don't forget it that you already have a partner. Even for dancing."

"Miss Suda, don't forget you have an arrangement marked in twenty minutes." the butler said after opening the dancing hall's door

"Oh my! I had almost forgotten about it! Come on Jör, we need to go. They're probably already waiting for us on the docks." Lila said, getting her signature weapon, the ring blade, grabbing Jörmungandr's hand.

"When we get on the docks I'll let you go into the water." she said while walking rapidly.
"I know you don't like being in human form for too long."

"Its not that bad... the human body I mean..."

"What's wrong with you today Jör? Feeling comfortable as a human? I never thought I would hear you say those words!" she said, laughing.

"Stop provoking me Lila, you know I still prefer my true form. But its undeniable that the human form has its... advantages. Of course,
it is nothing is compared to my true form, but... I cant learn how to dance while I'm a gigantic dragon, can I?" he said looking at her with a smile.

"Well, you better prepare yourself! I'm a very exigent teacher!" she said with a mischievous smile.

After darting through the town, they finally got to the docks. The familiar smell of salt, spices, the exotic smells brought by merchants that came from far away lands, the sound of money... that was literally the blood that kept Wildeshore alive. Goods from all around the world could be found there. Nothing was too exotic or too rare to be sold at the Wildeshore docks.
Money attracts a lot of merchants, and every single one of them always brings a little of their homeland and culture with them. Stories, legends, myths, dances... And that was what Lila loved the most about Wildeshore, she loved to dance at the parties organized by the merchants who visited Wildeshore (Almost a tradition. They were organized for the merchants to meet each other, tell stories, rest a little bit from the long journey.) That day wasn't different from the usual. The docks were teeming with merchants, each one of them bringing different smells, different stories and cultures.

"Go ahead Jör, I promised you I would let you go to the water." she said smiling to him. She always liked to watch him as he went to the water. It was truly a wonderful sight.

Upon hearing those words, Jörmungandr immediately ran to the end of the pier, jumping on the water. As the young man's silhouette disappeared on the deep, dark waters, a gigantic silhouette of a serpent appeared. Moving extremely fast through the water the silhouette was becoming bigger and bigger as it approached the surface. A blue horn, so sharp that even staring at it passed a dangerous sensation, followed by red eyes that seemed to pierce one's soul as the dragon surfaced in all its glory. Beautiful but at the same time frightening, the beast let out a piercing roar to the sky announcing its presence, shaking the air itself.

"Well, after this little show, i'm sure that the people we need to meet already know where we are.." Lila said, looking at the dragon, giggling.

Walking to the end of the pier, she extended her hand to the dragon. As the beast gently put his head down, almost covering the entire pier, Lila hugged the creature, not even a little afraid of the terribly sharp teeth, big enough to terrify anyone who sees it.

"It doesn't matter how many times I see your true form, I always get amazed by its beauty and strength." she said, looking to the creature's fearful and piercing eyes, which looked back at her with a kind and caring gaze. Closing its eyes, the dragon gently used its nose to gently touch the woman's cheek.

"Now behave yourself, they already know we are here, now we need only to wait for the people who sent us that message."

As soon as she said that, the dragon used his nose to playfully push her to the water.

"No, stop it! I cant get wet! we're waiting for someone!" Lila said, laughing and pushing his nose, trying to avoid being pushed to the water.

In response to that, the creature opened his mouth as he tried to lick her.

Jumping away from its tongue with an agile and fast movement, Lila looked back at the dragon, who was literally laughing as it nudged her with his nose again.
"Don't even think about it! you'll get my dress all wet!" she said to the dragon with a serious face, but laughing afterwards as the creature nudged her.

The scene was so incredible that all the fear that the dragon's mighty roar could have caused disappeared in a second, giving place to heartfelt laughter as the merchant and others who passed through the docs saw the stupidly big creature playing with a human. The dragon's eyes were calm and happy as it played with Lila, everyone who looked at it could see that he really enjoyed being with the tiny human.