ITT: We Have All Become Dragons!

Well, I'm guessin' they did... (Cameron says.) Oh, and like, ya kinda hafta "wake them up". I say that in quotes, 'cause they can still only astral project themselves...

(Cameron motions toward a gong nearby.) One of you guys wanna hit that?

(I'm tempted to, but I don't want to jump ahead of everyone else.) If nobody else wants to, I guess I can...does anyone else want to do the honors?

Solomon, realizing his request has fallen on deaf ears, walks over to the magenta dragon, and locks his hand on their leg.

“Hello?”

Catching up to the others and going into the room containing who you assume to be Dijon and Ruby, you see a chance for you to do something big and important. You go into a deep focus, trying to get anything from the massive dragons in the room, but can't seem to get anything. Not on your own, anyway. "I'm pretty sure it's gonna take more than one of us to wake them up or something."

Hearing the comment about locomotion, Wiley raises up his new forelegs for the black dragon to witness, and stretches them out to their full length, testing out his free range of movement at the same time as making his point.

" I'm pretty sure no human has arms that look like this, either. Unless you were born wearing a wingsuit or something... anyways, point is if you want me to act like I don't have these things that's gonna be a bit hard to pull off."

"Point taken," Magistrous replies.

"Is someone going to wake them up?"

(With no one else really jumping at the chance to bang the gong, I go over to look for a mallet. However, I don't see one.)

Um...where's the mallet, Cameron? (I ask Cameron.)

Mallet? (Cameron giggles.) You use your tail, silly! Rear back and give it a good solid whack! But, like, not too hard, y'know, that could hurt.

(Oh, of course...I look back at my thick sea-green tail, up at the others for a moment, then turn and swing my tail at the gong.)

BW-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-O-NG...!!!

(Ouch, man, Cameron wasn't kidding. I don't have time to dwell on this for long however as I look over to the sleeping Dijon and Ruby just in time to see the blue auras surrounding them to rise up from them and take the shape of two Eastern-style dragons; wearing the same clothes as before. They are bluish-colored as opposed to how their sleeping selves look. My jaw drops in shock.)

Somebody rang...? (Dijon says cheerfully, looking around and spotting us.)

Greetings, what is your business with us? (Ruby says. Her expression seems more stern and serious than her grinning companion's.)

Heya, guys! It's me on behalf of these guys! (Cameron says, pointing to us.)

Glad to see all of you! (Dijon says, smiling warmly at us.) Care to introduce yourselves?

(I nervously step forward. I feel the need to kneel down in front of them because they seem to be royalty?) Um...my name is Flora...nice to meet you guys...?

It is a pleasure to meet you, Flora. (Ruby says to me.)

Heh heh, you don't have to kneel before us, you know. (Dijon chuckles.)

(I sheepishly get back up.)

Solomon eyes the gong. “So that’s what you wanted us to hit...”

He turns back to Dijon and Ruby.

“Alright, I’ll cut to the chase. I’m Solomon Daggertooth. I’m looking for a dragon. Her name’s Shannon. Heard of her?”

In hindsight, running through the jungle at a sprint - even with my wings folded as best as I could - was a poor idea. The tattered remnants of several vines, hanging from the spikes of my wings, are a testament to that. A few wingbeats send a fair bit of it off, though the rest still clings tight. Ah well. With luck, it won't impede flight.

I continue onward, swiftly reaching the base of the ridge. A casual glance over the ridge assesses its height and steepness, and I nod to myself. Small, with a fair level of steepness to it. Shouldn't be too hard. One clawed foot raises, and plunges into the rock, deep enough to gain a strong foothold, then another. Though a fairly easy to scale ridge, my form's massive size and bulk slows me down. It takes a while to reach the top, but I reach it nonetheless, pulling my bulk up to the top of the ridge with a final grunt of effort.

The volcanic terrain greets me, with what looks like a village of sorts in the distance. I scramble backwards, and narrowly avoid sliding back down the ridge. I've heard the horror stories about lava - about the burns it can inflict, about the sheer levels of damage it can cause. It just feels... wrong on some instinctual level. I take a deep breath. I have come this far. I. Will. not. Stop. Because. Of. LAVA! I take a step forwards. Then another. Bit by bit, I inch closer to the bridge. The feeling only gets worse as I approach, every inch of my body screams at me that this is a bad idea. I force myself to keep moving forwards, forcing the panic down.

I step up, pacing a bit before stepping up to Dijon and Ruby. "Alright. I'm Oren." I ponder if that was adequate before stepping back into a corner of the room. I felt sorta dizzy around them, and was glad to be done with that. A familiar flash brings you to a different place again. Not again... This time, the dragon is crossing the same paths everyone here have already passed. Whoever they are, they're getting close.

Well... (Dijon clicks his claws together somewhat awkwardly as he faces Solomon.) We do have multiple Shannons here...perhaps you could be more specific?

Anyway, what brings you and these other dragons here? (Ruby asks Cameron.)

Oh...uh...like, that wish you made to Dijon to bring us all here...uh... (Cameron says, chuckling nervously.) Uh...not all of the dragons were actually...y'know, dragons.

What are you talking about? (Ruby asks, glancing over at Dijon for a moment.)

They call themselves hoo-muns or somethin' like that... (Cameron says.)

(Dijon looks worried, and Ruby looks at the rest of us with an expression that seems to say "confusion" and "anger" both at once.)

“Tall. Large, but skinny for her proportions. Blue. Yellow eyes, with round, gentle irises. Evident dark blue wings. Is she here?”

Solomon recited the description in a seemingly memorized tone.

Edited by TacoBadger on Jul 17th 2018 at 6:31:48 AM

" Humans, but yeah. We all just got sent here somehow, and I'm pretty sure none of us looked like this beforehand. I nearly— got hurt pretty bad, because I didn't expect it."

Wiley cuts himself off as he speaks, seemingly correcting himself, and pays little attention to Solomon for the moment. He's a bit more worried about his own case than the issues of others for the moment, though he does note in the back of his mind that something seems to be up.

Kris was going to introduce herself, but was quickly caught off guard by the royal dragons' behavior once humans were brought up. What, did some human come in and plunder their goods or something? She knew she's heard of the sort of thing happening in stories, but that probably wouldn't be fitting here. Something deeper, maybe?

"Is there a problem with that?"

Edited by StarBee on Jul 17th 2018 at 9:25:59 AM

"Uh, what are humans? Why are we so worked up about them, anyways?"

Starting this back up! If anybody needs to be reminded of what's going on, ask on here or the Discord channel.

(Dijon starts to answer Solomon's question (now knowing which Shannon Solomon is talking about) when Ruby glares at him and tries to elbow him (but her arm only passes through him since they are both still currently in astral projected states).)

Dijon, we were supposed to only be transporting beings from our old world to here, and only them. How on earth did you manage to pull living creatures from completely unrelated worlds? I thought you were better with granting wishes than this... (She says, glaring at Dijon.)

I-I-I'm not sure what happened... (Dijon says, embarrassed by this development. He hangs his head.)

(Ruby sighs and turns back to us.) I certainly hope you all weren't too attached to your old worlds, because you all are going to be stuck here like this until Dijon and I are able to fully recover from the strain of bringing our kind from our world into this one, along with all of you and who knows who how many others from the other worlds by mistake. Considering that we did this mere days ago, that's going to be a very long time...I apologize...

Yes...I'm terribly sorry... (Dijon also says.)

(My heart sinks, as I was hoping that we'd be able to have the option to return to our own worlds. I slowly slump down onto my rump and look down at my big dragon-y self in shock. Guess I'm going to be stuck in this body for a while...) Aw man...

Oh...well...um...gosh, I'm really sorry, guys... (Cameron says, facing all of us.)

Meanwhile, another, smaller dragon is watching the scene.

What?! These guys brought me here? They took me away from... wherever my home is? I can't believe this!

The dragon scampers in rather angrily. He is covered in black and white stripes. He has a very odd, skinny build, almost like a seahorse with legs. He wears a ruff around his neck and a cone-shaped hat. He glares at Dijon and Ruby.

Hey! How could you do this to me? I don't wanna be here! I just wanna go home!

But the others just stare at him. No one seems to be hearing him.

Wait, am I saying this in my head? Am I the only one who can hear this? Just great...

He feels his snout, and realizes he has no mouth. He lowers his head, as if sighing.

“What, you’re just going to ignore me? I get it. Classic. Just like everyone else.”

Edited by TacoBadger on Aug 29th 2018 at 11:44:53 AM

"Sorry, Solomon," says Hypnos. "We didn't mean to ignore you. This is all just a lot to take in. Can someone please help him?"

"Speaking of a lot to take in..." Hypnos looks over at the new dragon.

"Oh please, no."

"Hey there, little guy! Don't be afraid! We're all stuck as dragons too. Call me Hypnos! What's your name?"

"So, we're making up names, huh? Well, I can't remember my real one either, so how about, uh..."

"Oh right, nobody can hear me. What do I do, what do I do...?" The dragon looks around frantically when he looks closer at his hands and realizes that they're dripping with some black substance. Ink.

"Have I been dripping ink everywhere? Great. Well, I guess this will do."

The dragon bends over and uses his finger to write "PIERRE" on the stone floor.

Realizing that Dijon and Ruby are watching him, Pierre sheepishly tries to wipe the writing off.

"Are they mad? They're mad, aren't they? They're gonna eat me, aren't they? Just great."

Edited by DrNoPuma on Aug 27th 2018 at 9:39:56 AM

(I notice the new small dragon, but I'm still reeling too much from realizing what's going on to really muster up anything beyond a weak wave at him.) H-Hi...

(Ruby shakes her head.) Well...we promise that we'll make you all feel at home here. Hopefully some day we'll be able to return you all to your respective homes... (She says.)

(In the meantime, Dijon regains his composure and turns to Solomon.) Sorry...she may be at her home at the edge of the village.

"So, we're gonna be here for a while, huh...?" Pierre says in his head. "I guess I should get to know these guys, then. I just wish I could speak to them."

Pierre approaches the other dragons uncertainly.

"I think he wants to come with us," says Hypnos. "Of course you can, little guy!"

"This blue guy seems alright," Pierre says. "I just hope he's not too overbearing. I don't know a lot about the others yet, but the turquoise one..." he says, looking at Flora. "She seems more my type. I'm not sure yet."

Edited by DrNoPuma on Aug 28th 2018 at 10:43:56 AM

The heat of the lava around the bridge is less than I expected. Still doesn't change the fact that my nerves are screaming. Being near the molten rock just feels... wrong, somehow. On an instinctual level, rather than conscious. I progress onward nonetheless, crushing the panic down. My nerve breaks barely halfway across, and I all but bolt across to the other side.

I semi-slump to the ground shortly after crossing. A small sigh escapes my throat; the panic fades away, replaced by a feeling of equal parts embarrassment and relief. Relief, at being a fair distance away from the lava. Embarrassment, at the speed with which my nerve broke considering my... new form. You're a dragon. You weren't affected by the heat. What are you afraid of?.

I shake my head to clear those thoughts. Focus. Get to the settlement, then think. I shift back to standing, and resume walking toward the village.

Edited by Clockwork_Heart on Aug 29th 2018 at 8:22:59 AM

Well...the more the merrier... (I say, still feeling dazed from the reveal that we're stuck like this. I should introduce myself to this guy.) Oh, my name is Flora...

Solomon stands up and stretches. "Well, it would appear matters have sorted themselves. I need to reacquaint myself with my very good friend. Hopefully, I can aid you in the future, young adventurers. Au revoir."

Solomon takes off, from the City Hall.

"Woah. That is a lot to take in so quickly. Are you sure this happened to everyone, 'cause I don't remember a thing before hatching."

Take care, okay? (I hear Cameron call after Solomon as he leaves.)

Well...hm... (Ruby looks at Oren, curious.) Well...I cannot give you any true answers for why that might be beyond you having lost your memory in the journey...or you may be from our world after all...? I can't tell for sure...there isn't really much my brother and I can do in this state about that. I'm sorry.