11-26-2020, 02:21 PM
And when all the lights are broken, You keep the fire going
The downfall to having glowing golden locks was obvious. Yanhua couldn’t go unnoticed in the dark, and what was considered a lantern of safety and good luck in Taiga worked against him in the dead of Hyaline’s dark mountain nights. He had to weasel himself into a thicket of laurel, highly uncomfortable for an animal of his lanky height, to wait out for Leilan (who was taking his sweet time.) Alone and silent on the hillside, Yan listened out for the sound of giant, leathery wings as they faded into the distance, then altogether. The quiet enveloped him. Time passed, enough of it that the smaller insects began to chirp their shrill little songs again. Yan stayed put and waited until he started to feel a prickling sense of irritation, and then his reverie was interrupted by a much more concerning noise nearby.
He jerked to attention all at once, hyper aware of something crashing into the mountain woods nearby, eyes wide and heart pumping as he heard the muffled sound of cursing. He figured Leilan wouldn’t be so unceremonious, and he reasoned to himself that no one intending to take him by surprise would give away their location so easily. Still, he held back. With Pangea on uncertain footing and currently leaderless, the surrounding Eastern lands were a dangerous place for outsiders. He wasn’t safe at home anymore; Yan couldn’t just barge out to greet whoever it was like he would in Taiga.
He could be prepared, though. The tall, lean northerner felt a strange sense of certainty in his ability to at least defend himself, so he lowered his head to peer through the tangled leaves and his ears fell flat against his neck. He’d decided to rush the stranger at the last second if they came close enough, but heard his brother whispering clearly the second time Nashua spoke and surprised himself by chuckling instead. Of course it was Nash, of course.
“You don’t get to have all the fun all of the time, @[Nashua].” Yan breathed happily, relaxing his expression as he tugged himself free from the clutches of his hiding place and stumbled down the hillside, back onto the trail where he could meet his twin face-to-face. Happy to see such a familiar horse, the glow in his hair brightened. “Glad to see you, brother. But I was expecting…” He trailed off and turned his head, just in time to see the subject of discussion finally join them.
“@[Leilan].” Yanhua called out to the Freyr, listening with a dark eye roll as the elder dragon-shifter chimed in. Typical Leilan. Always talking and never listening, but what else had he expected? He paused and considered mouthing off for the fun of it, but Yanhua held himself back after considering their current situation. Nothing would irritate Leilan more than refusing to play at his games, and besides: they both remembered how the alliance round had gone, didn’t they? If Leilan had forgotten so quickly, Yanhua could always remind him.
That put a smile right back onto Yan’s face, and he answered the King of the North brightly. “The Pangean’s really know how to show up and show out.” He exhaled, shaking his head at the scenes replayed through his thoughts. The Chamber reborn around him, the gathering and its rejection, and Straia right at the center of it all. “Utter chaos from start to finish. Straia grafted one of the old Kingdoms onto Pangea, but it seems like the magic didn’t stick. Not sure if it was because the general population hated the idea or because Beqanna itself rejected the Raven Queen’s tactics, but whatever the reason the place is uglier than it was before. I got out of there as quickly as I could when the earthquakes started, but Straia herself wasn’t so lucky. Something nasty swallowed her right down into the bowels of hell; that’s the only way I can explain it without showing you the echo.” He finished up.
He jerked to attention all at once, hyper aware of something crashing into the mountain woods nearby, eyes wide and heart pumping as he heard the muffled sound of cursing. He figured Leilan wouldn’t be so unceremonious, and he reasoned to himself that no one intending to take him by surprise would give away their location so easily. Still, he held back. With Pangea on uncertain footing and currently leaderless, the surrounding Eastern lands were a dangerous place for outsiders. He wasn’t safe at home anymore; Yan couldn’t just barge out to greet whoever it was like he would in Taiga.
He could be prepared, though. The tall, lean northerner felt a strange sense of certainty in his ability to at least defend himself, so he lowered his head to peer through the tangled leaves and his ears fell flat against his neck. He’d decided to rush the stranger at the last second if they came close enough, but heard his brother whispering clearly the second time Nashua spoke and surprised himself by chuckling instead. Of course it was Nash, of course.
“You don’t get to have all the fun all of the time, @[Nashua].” Yan breathed happily, relaxing his expression as he tugged himself free from the clutches of his hiding place and stumbled down the hillside, back onto the trail where he could meet his twin face-to-face. Happy to see such a familiar horse, the glow in his hair brightened. “Glad to see you, brother. But I was expecting…” He trailed off and turned his head, just in time to see the subject of discussion finally join them.
“@[Leilan].” Yanhua called out to the Freyr, listening with a dark eye roll as the elder dragon-shifter chimed in. Typical Leilan. Always talking and never listening, but what else had he expected? He paused and considered mouthing off for the fun of it, but Yanhua held himself back after considering their current situation. Nothing would irritate Leilan more than refusing to play at his games, and besides: they both remembered how the alliance round had gone, didn’t they? If Leilan had forgotten so quickly, Yanhua could always remind him.
That put a smile right back onto Yan’s face, and he answered the King of the North brightly. “The Pangean’s really know how to show up and show out.” He exhaled, shaking his head at the scenes replayed through his thoughts. The Chamber reborn around him, the gathering and its rejection, and Straia right at the center of it all. “Utter chaos from start to finish. Straia grafted one of the old Kingdoms onto Pangea, but it seems like the magic didn’t stick. Not sure if it was because the general population hated the idea or because Beqanna itself rejected the Raven Queen’s tactics, but whatever the reason the place is uglier than it was before. I got out of there as quickly as I could when the earthquakes started, but Straia herself wasn’t so lucky. Something nasty swallowed her right down into the bowels of hell; that’s the only way I can explain it without showing you the echo.” He finished up.
And when all the nights feel like they're closing, You're leaving an opening