A tale of scales and feathers (Locke/Neam/Anzu)

[Aeos]

Foxatross Forest

The pair of dragons arrived on Vinland a few days ago. They had taken in the sights of Aurion and prepared themselves for an expedition into the island. Aeos had come back to the island with a purpose. He wanted to scale the mountains of the island. He missed his opportunity the first time due to time constraints. But, this time he had taken care of all his responsibilities back on Elibe. He was glad to be back on Vinland. There was something about the wild atmosphere of the island that just made him feel good. Perhaps, a bit too good. He was doubly glad to not be alone on this journey. He dragged Locke out of the Nabatan Desert and convinced him to travel around with him.

Aeos hoped that the earth dragon shared the same appreciation of nature as he did. The treck through the thick forest was difficult but fun. Aeos pointed out all of the things he had done in the forest. He showed Locke where he and Gar fought a boar. Then he showed him where they fought a giant doog and met Rhea. He explained to Locke what the taguel were. That they were shape shifters like them.But, not quite the same. It was a difficult concept for him to explain. He hoped to run into one of the taguel and have them show Locke how it worked. Aeos felt a sense of pride as he guided Locke through the wilds. He used his heightened half shifted senses to maneuver them through the forest. He mostly used scent to guide him and remain on the very fringes of certain taguel territories. The monsters here seemed to be different variants than that of Elibe. They like most things on this island felt natural. They were natural. Aeos carved his way through some vines with his partially shifted claw hands.

“There should be a river up ahead. A small one. We can take a break there if you like. Maybe even catch some fish.”

[Locke]

Locke had been surprised to see Aeos, to say the least. He had been reconstructing the Sanctuary, dragging and carving huge blocks of stone and working to restore the building to its former glory, when the Air Dragon had arrived with an idea for an exciting adventure. The Earth Manakete was happy to oblige his friend and travel, and they had come to the deep forest of Vinland with excitement in their minds and readiness in their spirits. 

The Air Dragon had been here before, and as they worked their way through the dense foliage Locke followed his companion, listening to the stories he told of his past adventures on the new land. It was invigorating, to be in an environment so untainted and so natural. It restored the senses and gladdened the mind. The two used their enhanced bodies to clear a path, slicing through creepers and clawing their way through patches of entangling branches as they explored.

“There should be a river up ahead. A small one. We can take a break there if you like. Maybe even catch some fish.”

Locke nodded. That was a good idea. Rest briefly, drink, and eat a snack. That would give them a brief respite, allow them to collect and calm, and then push onward.

"That is a good idea, Aeos. We would be well served to keep our strength up."

Sniffing the air, Locke addressed his friend again, a bit of puzzlement in his voice.

"Friend, explain again the Taguel. What manner of creature are they, to shift without stone and keep traits of both forms? To me this seems unnatural, but you have assured me that they are the most well-suited to their lands, even better than the humans at adapting and surviving. I am having some trouble fully grasping this idea."

[Anzu]

A piercing cry split the skies, as the monstrous pale hawk let out a signal. A warning, to other Taguel, as well as a signal to the onyx feathered partner who followed him. Though his quarry would not be found any time soon, most likely, he would still remain alert. Monstrous marble white shaded wings flapped twice for ascension before extending to glide along the pockets of air twisting and writhing through the skies. He preferred this form, when hunting, honestly. His sense of sound was seldom useful when mid flight from the sheer volume of wind that whipped past him. His sense of smell existed, but was nothing special. However his eye sight. That, that, was a distinctive advantage in his hawk form. A greatly enhanced sense of visual tracking and overall greater performance in visual prowess.

Though he was a monstrosity in size, even among his fellow bird Taguel, Anzu was out of place in the skies to those not native to Vinland through sheer wingspan. No bird native to Elibe had a wingspan over nine feet, where Anzu from tip to tip was just an inch over twenty one feet in full wingspan. His feathers rippled with a soft ruffle from the winds that swept through, and he raced through the air on expeditious currents while continuing to scan the forest below. The sea of green seemed undisturbed. Both positive, and negative. It seemed that their target had not rampaged much through this section of the forests, but also meant that it would be difficult to locate it until they found it already causing carnage; this fact serving as a negation of the entire purpose to their preemptive tracking.

The sun still drifted through the sky with its immense radiant waves of light and heat bathing through out the landscape. The canopy below shielding the inhabitants of Vinland bound to the ground, while Anzu raced directly within its gaze. Every moment, diligently observing for something out of place. Anything that didn't belong to the scene or-

Two individuals. Through the openings within the immense forest he could see them clearly. His powerful gaze focused upon these two as he glided from a distance above. The Ciliary muscles shifted the perceptive focal point of his eyes as if "zooming" in, taking in the details of them with perfect clarity. A wave of annoyance washed over the Arbiter while he compared them to the previous aesthetic of the small pockets of humanity native to Vinland. These, were not them. A much louder, and far more aggressive ear-splitting cry left his stout beak as the hawk Taguel warned both the individuals below as well as his partner before he hung for a brief moment in the sky; a perfect moment of suspension before pivoting and angling downwards. Then, he dove. His speeds climbed rapidly as gravity assisted him in reaching terminal velocity in seconds. He was angled for an intercepting location several feet ahead of the two who walked near one another. In the final second before his hawk form would crash into the ground, his body shifted instantly into the form he took on as a secondary image.

Boom

The ground exploded into a series of dirt infused clouds which clogged the air. Debris in the form of rocks and small clustered clumps of dirt flew through the air. A small crater indented the ground before them from the impact of the fairly heavy Arbiter. From above the cloud and debris, two immense white wings unfolded, pure white feathers bristling as they fully unfurled only to flap forwards once. The winds kicked up. Hard.

Shockwave used

His wings flapped, sending a powerful torrent of winds towards the two intruders. It also dispersed the clouds and dust almost instantly. The winds were indeed strong for a single wing-beat, enough to knock an unsuspecting individual on their back or to slide back one braced for them. Otherwise, though, it was a harmless motion employed to ensure that the two before him were focused squarely on himself and did not take him lightly. The gust of winds lasted for only a handful of seconds, almost six, before no longer swirling and kicking up around the two dragons clad in human visage. Now, they could see him clearly.

At six feet eight inches, and almost entirely muscle from a brutal life-time of hunting and battling the vicious wild-life of Vinland to survive, Anzu was no less a threatening image than the creatures the Arbiters fought when not investigating the absolutely infuriating amount of intruders recently upon Vinland. His aggression though, was technically founded from a good place of mind, for he knew that these two were outsiders. They knew nothing of the foe that he and his partner hunted. They knew not of the danger that traveling so unprepared could bring about. He would not suffer their stupidity if they sought to meaner into the wilds only to be mauled by the fiends within. Anzu's voice was loud, and his tone harsh with a baritone to it that befit his poise while he folded his arms over his broad chest; wings unfolding once more as if preparing for another wing-beat.

"You two. You have no business here. You are outsiders. Leave. NOW."

[Deleted]

Keeping up with her feathered 'friend' was a chore at the best of times, and when he was transformed - well - suffice it to say that Neamhain was not as gifted in the arts of leaving everyone else behind in her wake, precluding any ability to speak in preference of staying somewhere in his vicinity. But Neamhain had been acutely aware of that fact before this task began and had offered no complaint then, and she would not denigrate Anzu now for it. The value of his sight compared to her own was well worth the hassle, and given the raw threat of their prey, having a lesser partner would be suicidal. And while she was willing to die for her people, the raven was not particularly eager to do so for anything less - especially something as stupid as 'I didn't feel like keeping up with Anzu.'

So Neamhain simply focused on keeping up with her counterpart, using her decidedly less overwhelmingly powerful eyes to search as well. She could have transformed, but it seemed.. unnecessary, and she didn't particularly care to do it often anyways. Magic was far easier to manipulate in human form, at least in a controlled fashion, and she liked to feel absolutely in control of her spells. Also, on the off chance that they ran into any island natives or other Taguel while hunting, human form tended to be less, ah, intimidating when negotiating. Neamhain subscribed just as much as Anzu to the shock and awe variety of diplomacy, but unlike him she was comfortable with everything on the spectrum - at least everything that didn't involve admitting weakness or begging others to do things. Just because she saw the value in other approaches did not mean she was anything but a proud Taguel, and Taguel did not... lessen themselves to servile, toothless pleading.

Anzu's warning did not go unheeded at drawing her full attention, and while she allowed herself a silent here we go again in minor displeasure at his decision to immediately go crashing down rather than say consulting her or considering decorum, again, she had expected nothing else from him, so it would be hypocritical indeed to complain now. Instead, Neamhain simply resigned herself to following along, gliding down on black wings. She would have just dropped most of the way, but, well, that didn't play very well with dresses. Needless to say Anzu beat her to the ground despite her having been at a somewhat lower altitude than him originally, given that he had no such concerns. He DID have a skill for... memorable entrances though. Not that she was gonna tell him to his face. His ego would probably consume most of Vinland.

As she neared the ground, several powerful flaps from her large wings drastically slowed the raven's descent, the last just before landing allowing her to simply place her feet on the ground as if she had taken a perfectly normal step. It wasn't like she could repeat Anzu's bombastic approach anyways, her body far less durable than his, and there was no need for it anyways - he had most assuredly made certain that their new 'friends' were aware of the Taguel's presence.

Hm. She didn't recognize the clothing style. She had only met two humans from Outside, so the raven was uncertain if these two were they or simply villagers from somewhere on Vinland that she wasn't familiar with, but it was irrelevant to their current task - neither she nor Anzu had time to waste shepherding them to safety. Smiling faintly, with just enough warmth to not be as chilling as winter and very little more, Neamhain spoke up in a dulcet but firm tone. "What my esteemed companion meant to convey is that this area is currently extremely dangerous for humans, and that you two should retreat to the safety of civilization immediately. We cannot afford to provide you protection while hunting." Unlike Anzu there was no immediate and obvious threat emanating from her - no blatant brawn or magical tomes - but an observant onlooker could note the tenseness in her body that suggested she was not just some poncy noblewoman trying to calm her bodyguard. She and Anzu were equals, and she did not use that term lightly. If things went poorly, she was more than ready to bring the magic gathering within and without her to bear on her foes, human or otherwise.

[Aeos]

“The taguel.. are.. you know what, it would be easier to explain if there was one here to show you. They are like.. for lack of better words like beast men. They can change into animals and men. Not all of them.. are friendly. Some don't like it when you step on their territories. I apologize for taking us a longer route through the forest.” He turned around to face Locke and walked backward for a bit. The path ahead of them was mostly clear. The scent of fresh water was slowly filling the air. He could hear the soft rabble of the stream.But, he then stopped suddenly. Something else was in the air besides the scents and sounds of fresh water. He heard it. A piercing cry of a hawk or maybe an eagle. He could hear two sets of wing beats. One was slower in wing beat presumably because the wing span was larger. It reminded him of his own wings whenever he was transformed. Although these sounded distinctly less leathery.

Aeos instinctively drew a bit more power out of his stone just incase. This draw changed his appearance slightly. His ear tips now had a slightly more scaled appearance. This slightly segmented appearance went down his neck and was covered by his long black hair. He looked up and saw the source of the noise. A large white hawk and it was descending down upon them.

“Incoming!” Aeos took a few quick steps away as the massive thing covered in white feathers landed. He landed hard. The rumble felt like thunder after a lightning. The landing was hard enough to change the ground below him. The hawk changed into his human like form and let out a bust of energy through his wings. It was enough to kick up an impressive amount of dust and forest debris. Aeos thought this to be pretty cool. It was similar to the swirling wind thing he did when he needed a smoke screen for his dragon form. But, this also felt different it didn't feel or smell like concentrated bursts of magic. The bird man didn't seem to be friendly.

"You two. You have no business here. You are outsiders. Leave. NOW."

For a moment he was reminded of Carmichael and Jabal. They too had rather impressive muscular figures and for a brief moment the dragon in human guise felt unmanly.

“Locke.. that's a taguel. Do you understand what I meant now? Though this one has more feathers then fur.” He spoke to his companion. Then he turned his attention to the figure in front of them.

“Sir we mean no ill will. We just want to get to the stream and refill our canteens.” We technically have business with the stream you brute. Aeos closed his eyes briefly. Now was not the best time for the cocky voice in his head. When he opened them again he noticed the other taguel. A woman with a wonderful set of black wings. She had a much more cheerful disposition then the hawk man. And her speech was a bit more advanced too. Not that he doubted the hawk man could have the same amount of vocabulary. But considering he had up until this point spoke only in short sentences, Aeos didn't have much to go by.

“Milady, our home civilization is too far away for us to simply retreat to. We will move out of your way, hide amongst the mud, and trees, if need be. We do not wish to halt thy hunting. But, we are in need of water. Please let us pass.” Aeos did his best to keep his expression neutral. Yeah. Except the big guy over there kinda just gave away all our positions with that landing of his. So whatever they were hunting is either gone or coming after us.

[Locke]

As Aeos explained, Locke shrugged. He would have to see to believe, it seemed. Beings partially animal and partially human? Unheard of. The mighty dragons only hid in the guise of humans, and even most beasts could defeat a human without their tools. It appeared to be a flawed creation, these Taguel. Beast men, on a faraway land… How could they have come to be? What place did they hold in the hierarchy of the world? How did they interact? How would they mix with the xenophobic humans?

And then there was Aeos’s warning. Locke looked up, his eyes focusing on a shape coming closer quickly. As the ‘something’ rushed down, a bird in fact, huge in size and barreling towards them, Locke let power rush through him, drawing on the might of his stone and feeling the energy of a dragon enhance and invigorate him. There was a faint glow that emanated from his chest as the stone illuminated, and then his whole form expanded, wavering golden as the outline warped, bent, and twisted. As the wind struck, the Earth Manakete lowered his true body to the ground, keeping himself relatively steady until it had passed. Then he stood upright once more, twisting his neck to crack the joints and then letting out a roar of his own, a response cry. Locke in his true form was covered in spines and spikes, like the stalagmites and stalactites of a cave, and his tail bristled with barbs. In the forest light, the Labradorite-sheen scales were a dark gray-green, an odd contrast to the undergrowth.

The hawk spoke, as it was joined by another bird, a raven, also large.

“You two. You have no business here. You are outsiders. Leave. NOW.”

The raven clarified, in a much more tactful manner, but the damage was done. Something about the first meeting with another race, and one who seemed so unnatural and so similar simultaneously, made him very uneasy. Compounded with the horrid welcome, the unpleasantness became like a thorn pushed deep into his foot. A deep growl came from within the Earth Manakete’s throat, and he stepped forward past Aeos, even as his friend tried to diffuse the situation. Locke first addressed the raven, the more polite Taguel, in words sharp as obsidian and hard as granite. In fact, the words were probably barely intelligible, coming from his draconic vocal cords. If they could not comprehend, perhaps Aeos would be willing to translate.

"Do not assume what you do not know, Taguel. I am no human, though I often am forced to take their form. And I need no protection – certainly not against creatures of the forest. No common animal is close to a match for the ancient might of our race."

To the large one, the hawk, Locke narrowed his eyes, his tail twitching almost imperceptibly in a goading gesture.

"Do not threaten me, Taguel. Ours was this entire world, once, and ours it shall be again. Though you may be master of your domain, what is that to a master of the earth itself?"

It was an uncharacteristic response for Locke, usually the diplomat, who had striven so hard for so many years to bring understanding and reconciliation between dragons and humans. Aeos would know this, but the other two would not. Undoubtedly his friend would be wondering exactly what had gotten into Locke, and the Manakete himself was unsure. It was just a poor way to be introduced to a new race.

[Anzu]

His gaze instantly took to the monstrous one that transformed. Perhaps the slight internal shock was enough to briefly take away from his raw hostility. If only for a literal second. This thing had fangs, and claws, and was not unlike the rest of the island predators. However, he'd seen Baels that could dwarf this lizard. He'd killed Baels that could dwarf it. The beast's form was far less impressive because of this. Lesser experienced hunters of his tribe no doubt would've given more respect to an impressive form. Not he though, who had been hunting for his tribe for almost an average human life-span's worth and fought with talon and beak and hand and wing to bring down such things.

Please let us pass.

They weren't listening. They did not understand that one of the deadliest creatures he had ever faced was roaming this forest, and given his roster of battles it was likely something that these two offlanders..these... foreigners could endure. His muscles instantly grew tense and his wings subtly reared back as if ready to take flight, before he realized that it was probably best to let his partner handle the situation. The bronze skinned Taguel let his fingers slack from clenched fists while he shifted ever so quietly from a gaze to his partner.

Neamhain had a certain...calming effect when Anzu heard her speak. As if her words flowed through the torrential currents of his thoughts like a powerful yet steady stream. They brought order to instinctual chaos. This was not to imply that he was a mindless berserker who rampaged wantonly, but that his natural aggression was tempered often by her speaking. It was for this reason that their pairing as Arbiters was considered almost essential. He was too prone to violence. She was diplomatic. Her previous partners had a series of..misfortune befall them that resulted in their demise. Her current partner was harder to kill than almost any known beast on their native island from sheer tenacity. Surely, the beasts of Vinland had tried. A few times, he'd been in tight situations that others would've likely not waken up from; leaving her another dead partner to bring back to the Thousand Scales. So in an odd sort of way, they assisted one another. Perhaps...he would simply remain quiet and let her speak. He initially heard the grumbling words of the guttural toned dragon. He was not quick to hear it, though he was sure his partner could. He tried to understand the words but it took a few moments. Almost certainly, in this situation, he would stand back and let his partner speak.

Do not threaten me, Taguel

Or..he could kill it. He could crush it's throat and rend it's skull in two!

Anzu bothered not with words. The dragon continued it's insults as Anzu's wings instantly beat once off the ground with tremendous force. His body shifted and by the time his first wing-beat had finished and he was a solid twenty five feet within the sky, his hawk form had flapped the wings once more and the great white hawk plummeted downwards. A piercing cry split the air with the monstrous lethal beak parting wide. Despite the soft look of them, Anzu's feathers and skin were not soft and gentile like avian species of Elibe. The texture was much sturdier, like that of armor. His wings spread to full extend as twin feet hooked to expose his talons towards the dragon of great disrespect. The actual distance between them was small, and with his strength fully put behind the motion to ascend and dive granting him greater speed, he raced through the air with crushing force to rake his talons along the face of the transformed dragon. Intent that was, to tear all eight of his powerful digits along the front of the brutish lizards face.

He could have tried to grip and crush the skull, but he did not have the angle for it. He would have had to come from directly above. This denied him the advantage of a killing blow, but his sheer rage at the insults and disrespect were not so great that he sought to kill...yet. The hawk attempted the assault and flew past with carried speed from the dive before climbing high into the air swiftly once more. It was obvious, that he intended to circle back around again. Though for combat or to land...was to be determined.

[Deleted]

Neamhain had worked alongside Anzu more than a hundred hunts by now over their shared careers. They did not always agree on policies - she tended more towards careful preparation and cautious diplomacy if available followed by overwhelming force if not, he tended to skip the rest of it and just go straight to the bit where they fixed the problem permanently. Despite their ideological differences, both had learned the hard way that sometimes the other's approach was more effective; she had wasted time and even the element of surprise on meaningless attempts to avoid bloodshed, while he had sometimes made matters worse by acting as the spark to cause a battle that could have been avoided. Their relationship was one of give and take as a result, each of them grudgingly aware that the other was worth paying attention to - and just as importantly, she had learned that while she had her strengths, Anzu's instincts often bordered on prescience.

So it was that rather than try to stop her companion when he went on the offensive, Neamhain mimicked his ascent into the sky, darting upwards in a spiraling black trail of feathers and eruption of pressure below her before coming to a halt a few tens of feet up. Not as fast of a climb as her counterpart, but then she didn't need to actually physically follow him into the fray. One hand rose into the air above her, palm stretched towards the heavens, and with an explosive burst of harsh buzzing, electricity darted and snaked around her as magical pressure built. The sphere forming in her hand pulsed and screamed with the sheer force of the Anima magic within struggled to escape, but the majority stayed safely caged within, not projected as a weapon.

Yet.

Her curiosity about the existence of dragons learned from Elias and Ventus had given Neamhain false hopes of coexistence and learning, but Locke's incredible stupidity and arrogance had quite thoroughly dashed those hopes in the face of necessity. First and foremost, before she was a mage or a woman or a student, Neamhain saw herself as a protector of Vinland - of all its inhabitants, man and beast and Taguel alike. She certainly thought Taguel were pretty awesome, pride was not exactly an unknown vice to her, but seeing brave human hunters and warriors had given her a level of respect for the race that went far beyond simply viewing them as mortals to be protected. So it was not simply the cretin's insults to her race that triggered every sensibility she had, rather his foolhardy belief of ownership and sheer arrogance that nearly drove her to follow Anzu's example without further thought.

And while this... Locke, if the other man's naming of him had been accurate, was reasonably large... so too were some of the creatures of the island. She had fought beasts far more threatening, creatures who pulsed with a strength that this anemic lizard lacked, and while it had not been her strength alone through which they fell - Taguel recognized the power of teamwork - her magic tore through them nonetheless. Perhaps it was arrogance matching Locke's own or perhaps it was merely simple pragmatism born of experience, but Neamhain was quite confident in her magical firepower, given her focus on it to the exclusion of much else - and the larger the creature, the more difficult it would be to avoid the massive area of effect of her charged magic. She DID specialize in fighting large creatures and crowds alike after all - the only thing his shapeshifting had really accomplished was giving her a far easier target.

But restraint was her calling card, even if she wanted to rip the overgrown snake apart where he stood. Not that uncommon, but that was a story for another day. For now, they were on the precipice of an actual fight rather than simply two men with short triggers and less sense comparing their genitalia with each other, and despite her... personal feelings on the matter, Neamhain did not want to engage in unnecessary bloodshed. Especially not with the actual target of their hunt somewhere in the vicinity. Locke's idiotic actions had already probably alerted it, but she could at least act to mitigate the damage. All dislike of Locke aside, she would rather send him and his companion on their way unscathed than slay them and still have to deal with the target of their hunt; it was likely that Thousand Scales reinforcements would come fairly quickly if a truly large-scale battle erupted, but the raven did not care to leave things to chance if she could help it.

Sweeping her icy gaze across the battlefield once more, Neamhain settled on the unnamed man who had attempted to show grace when interacting with her and Anzu, rather than the man-child who strove to threaten those who would not hesitate to tear his fragile ego and his fragile body alike apart if the need arose. He was a fool, and fools did not listen to reason. The softer-spoken man might. It would have been tactically wiser to simply eradicate Locke and then if necessary team up on the other man, an option Anzu certainly would have championed, but the raven judged the chance of avoiding unnecessary loss of life and devastation to the island to be worth the risk of allowing the other two to unite.

"...Restrain your companion, traveler." Utterly gone was the calm civility and borderline-friendly kindness of her previous words; Neamhain's words now dripped with an iciness that put even the fiercest venom to shame, civil but only barely. There was an edge to her tone that had not been present before, as much a glimpse into the 'real' Neamhain as anything else. "I do not wish for unnecessary bloodshed - but we will protect this island from any threat, no matter who you think you are. I would have thought your kind had learned from the Scouring that pride goes before the fall."

[Aeos]

Aeos watched the two bird folk in silence. He was waiting for them to respond to his inquiry about passing through peacefully. He was a few steps in front of Locke with his back facing his companion. He didn't see the manakete transform until it was too late. The sudden exponential growth between human form and that of the dragon knocked Aeos over. WHAT IS HE DOING?!

He raised his arms up over his face to shield him from the dust that was kicked up. Locke spoke. Aeos would had been surprised to learn that dragons can indeed speak common tongue in dragon form. But, Locke had gone ahead and threatened the taguel.

“What?! WHAT?!” There was a very obvious look of shock and anger in his face. It was one of those universal expression that meant the same in every culture.

“WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?” He shouted. The taguel did not take kindly to Locke's reaction either. Aeos saw them take off. The white hawk was preparing to strike. SH*T.

“Locke! Watch out!” The wind dragon shouted. Hopefully, the earth dragon would do something to avoid the swirling feathery ball of death. Aeos didn't know that it was a warning shot. The Raven spoke to him.

“Restrain, your companion traveler.” She warned.

“Milady I swear he isn't usually like this. I will make an effort to stop him.” He responded back. His body slowly morphed into that of his half shifted self. He was full lizard man mode. His skin had morphed into scales, his hands were distinctly more claw like, his feet also had the same effect. His sandals had shattered in the process. Stop breaking shoes. The woman made a comment about the Scouring, pride, and falling. That didn't particularly sit well with Aeos but, this was not the time for him to say so. Right now he needed to stop Locke from doing anymore damage.

“LOCKE! YOU! BLOCKHEAD!” He shouted in a voice that was deeper, raspier, and louder then it had ever been before. He took advantage of his half shifted capabilities and ran forward. This form of himself was faster then it's fully “human” counterpart. It had better defenses, jumped better, and hit hard as well. If he really needed to go fast he could run on all fours. His fully half shifted form was more than enough to deal with any human opposition. This would be the first time he was forced to use it against another dragon. In real combat, not a simple sparring session.

Locke's dragon form was big. Possibly, as big as his dragon form. Perhaps a bit shorter. Locke's dragon form had several spikes on it. This made it difficult for him to guesstimate Locke's size. Aeos knew himself to be about roughly 18 meters. He never truly measured himself from tip to tail so he wasn't entirely sure. The most he got to an accurate measurement was a boulder, high up in the Nabatan mountains. He’d claw at it every year to find out if he grew. Much like how humans use a door frame and pencil to monitor the growth of their children. So far the boulder was still taller than he was. Aeos was still young in terms of dragon years, he might still grow, he might not.

He approached Locke and jumped. Even with the heightened capabilities of his half shifted from, his jump did not reach Locke's face. Aeos moved quickly, he grabbed one of Locke's body spikes and kept going. Aeos was moving very quickly. He was using all four of his limbs in the climb. He climbed up the dragon with the same movements and calculation of a cave gecko. The centuries of living, climbing, hunting, moving, through the Elibe’s mountain ranges were paying off for Aeos in these tense moments. The sharp spines did minimal damage towards his scalebound skin. Within minutes he was up at his primary goal, Locke’s head.

His stupid, big, jerk ass of a head. Aeos was furious at him for changing, for insulting the taguel, when they were simply trying to warn them that the area was dangerous. Locke had effectively damaged any sort of good first impression for dragon and taguel relationships. Why? Aeos didn't know. But, he was sure going to let Locke know about his current state of emotions. This was supposed to be a simple excursion through the island. A peaceful interaction between species. No, he just had to go ahead and ruin that.

The more he thought about it the more upset he became. There was a very real chance they could both die here, because of Locke's actions. Aeos didn't want any of them to die. He didn't want this fight. He wasn't expecting his normally laid back friend to act like this. He reached the last spike and jumped.

“KNOCK IT OFF!” He yelled. His emotion seemed to manifest itself in his fist. There was a surge of power he was familiar with, welling up at the end of his knuckles. The air dragon curled his “hand” into a fist and punched Locke hard in head. The energy that had gathered in his knuckles released into a swirling, concentrated mass of wind energy. The force of the blow was enough to break rock or splinter trees. Aeos fell towards the ground and landed on his feet. He jumped back a few places to avoid Locke should he fall in his direction. Hopefully, he had knocked some sense back into him, if not, knock him out completely.

[Locke]

There was a brief moment of silence, and then the two songbirds burst into the air, one swooping to descend at him with claws outstretched and one simply hovering, waiting with what appeared to be lightning magic in her feathery hands. It was a foolish decision, to come to attack him on the ground. Truly, these were warriors, but brash ones, most likely the heroes of their civilization. No wonder they lived on a small island, isolated from everything else. They’d probably all be dead otherwise, cut down by paranoid humans after some trigger-happy canary tried to claw someone’s eyes out.

As the hawk came down, and Aeos's voice rang out to warn him, Locke’s head whipped sideways, his neck serpentining to avoid the blow, and the bird moved past, its own momentum too great for it to change course to attempt another immediate assault. There was a sudden noise, a scraping and a tearing, and sudden pain shot through Locke as he continued his motion. It appeared that the bird had cut through his scales along his back, between two rows of spines, gouging a long slash down a sizable portion of his length. That was painful and made him even more unhappy, so much so that he readied himself to attack the bird in retribution.

Locke turned, preparing to spring into the air to chase it, knowing full well that he would lose his advantage of familiarity in the air. Aeos would be able to curve and swoop like this pigeon, but Locke was far less nimble off of the ground. Regardless, his body tensed, even as he felt something crawling up him, like a human would feel an ant roaming upon their foot. His legs bent, and he let his force explode as he took off from the ground, his wings expanding outward as a blow hit him squarely in the back of the head, sending him careening forward in an ungraceful somersault that landed him on his back in the trees, spikes embedding themselves deeply in the ground, the surrounding brush, everywhere and anywhere they could find purchase. Locke, completely stuck, took a moment to realize that Aeos had almost certainly blasted him with wind magic, because that damned black bird was still holding onto the magic as if she were some sort of manakete. She was not.

Giving a rumbling sigh, Locke shifted back into human form, unpleasantness showing on his face as he regained his calm and his senses. Why was Aeos so upset? He should have reacted similarly to these bestial halfbreeds, especially with the welcome as warm as the Ilian glaciers.

"Aeos."

Locke spoke from the trees, in draconic tongue. He was still fuming, but he did not intend to start a war, merely put the chickadees in their places.

"You failed to warn me that the Taguel were tactless beings, born out of some sort of bestial lust between humans and the animals of the forests. It seems a most crucial point to mention… How could you overlook the fact that these creatures possess the diplomatic skills of a rock. I do not think I can handle many more of these Taguel, unless these are some sort of highly offensive anomaly. I do not want to be constantly swatting at hummingbirds."

Turning to the black bird, and stepping out of the trees, Locke raised his voice, speaking once more in Common.

"We do not require your protection. You may go on your way, Taguel. As you can see, we are not humans, so you do not need to care for us like you might your own hatchlings. The intent of this trip was to encounter your kind, since I had never seen a Taguel. Now, I think I have seen quite enough. I pray our respective peoples may keep a peace that brings me no closer to your kind than you wish to be to mine. With that, I leave further talking to Aeos. He is able to deal with your kind much better than I."

The long cut was still oozing draconic blood from Locke's humanform back. He stood erect, however, no sign of it showing on his face. It would not do to let the little birds know they had struck well.

[Aeos]

The great hulking form of Locke's dragon self crashed into the ground. Aeos was pleased with this action. He felt as if he had truly knocked some sense into him. But, as the earth manakete recovered, and spoke, Aeos wished she could have smacked him some more. This wasn't like Locke at all. The black haired man could see that his companion was bleeding. Great. Now his dumb ass is hurt. The concern over his companion was pushed down by frustration and anger.

“What part of Shapeshifting. Beast. Men. Did you not understand?” He used his hands to emphasize the words. He spoke in low dragonic. He didn't know if the taguel could understand him or not. But, they could understand tone. The could understand his body language.

“And they posses language and diplomacy!” He pointed at both bird taguel.

“Apparently you do not!” He pointed at Locke.

“I told you oft their boundaries that we as GUESTS of this island should respect. That there are monsters on the island that are dangerous!” He was talking now in common tounge. He was glaring at Locke now. Aeos was furious at him. The dragon hadn't felt this mad at something in a long long time. His half shifted form might have added to his mood. Half shifted Aeos was much more “honest” then it human looking counterpart. Euphemious described it as a personality shift. Words and thoughts that were best left quiet were more exposed when he was half shifted like this.

“I brought you here with me because you are SUPPOSED TO BE Older. Wiser. And much more mellow then I am!” Low dragonic again. His hands curled up into fists. He really wanted to punch him again.

“Now we look like goddamn fools! You've made dragonkin look bad by flying off the handle like that.” He took a few steps away from Locke turned around and went to address the taguel. He took a deep breath and looked up at them in the sky. He really wanted this adventure to be something worthwhile. He wanted to talk to them. To learn from them. He exhaled and slowly allowed his form to change back to human.

“Taguel! Please hold your fire! We will heed your warning. We will leave this forest. I apologize for my companions irresponsible behavior.” He shot Locke a glance when he spoke the word. He looked back up then back down at the ground. Aeos needed to focus. He had to push his negative emotions down. He now has the task of navigating them both back to Aurion. He needed to tend to Locke's injury. He.. had so many things that needed to be done. Things that needed to be fixed.

The black haired man approached Locke. He grabbed the green haired one by the arm and pulled him away. Aeos would help treat the wound Locke received. He wouldn't let bitterness and anger cloud his actions. Aeos helped to tend to the wound as best he could. The trip back through the jungle was long and hard. Aeos kept himself mostly quiet least he say something damaging in this angry state.

End thread

Ooc- it is assumed that the dragons returned to Aurion.