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Post by Mantis Shrimp on Oct 17, 2020 21:31:00 GMT
Mantis had no idea how long he'd been swimming. It felt like hours. Hopefully, long enough that they won't be able to find me, Mantis thought. He'd decided to run away. He figured he could find dragons that liked him more than the Seawings in his village had. So he was weird-looking? That didn't mean they had to be so mean about it! He stopped to swim to the bottom of the ocean, lighting up the scales on his tail so he could see which kinds of seaweed were there. The water was filled with bright red light. Because the light from my scales is red, I can make them as bright as I want without hurting my eyes, he thought, trying to stay cheerful as the red light reminded him once again of how different he was from other Seawings. He found some seaweed he recognized to be edible, and started to eat. Another way I'm different from normal Seawings, he thought bitterly. He didn't like killing fish, and he preferred the taste of seaweed to fish anyways. Once he was full, he swam back up to the surface, and noticed something. An island! Well, it wasn't much of an island, but it was an island nonetheless. It was about the size of six dragons with their wings spread out, just big enough for him to rest for a bit. He pulled himself onto the island
Open to anyone!
Word count: 237
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Post by nightshade on Oct 18, 2020 17:59:49 GMT
Squid leapt from her rocky perch into the water. Her aquatic form allowed her to slid through the water with ease. The world progressively became dark. The kind of dark you only find deep in the ocean. The one that’s dark because it’s so deep the light is too weak to reach. A lovely, encompassing dark that swallows shadow and dragon alike. Squid loved it. Soon it got so dark that even her sharp eyes couldn’t pierce its darkness.
With a gentle spin she light up her scales. Starting at the tail going all the way to her snout. The cascade of bubbles surrounding her lit up with silver white light. She swam slowly until they dissipated. A school of small, speedy fish swam by in a fright. Now what are they running from? I do not recall, oh. Faint red light drew her attention. It looked to be coming from a dragon of some kind. Squid softened the light of her own scales as to not blind them. She swam up in front of them, realizing how odd they looked. And how much larger she was.
“Hello, I am Squid. Are you lost?” She flashed, if a tad aggressive in her action. At the moment she wasn’t on guard. But this dragon could be a threat to future charges. Best to show who is in charge here, before they get any ideas.
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Post by Mantis Shrimp on Oct 18, 2020 18:15:37 GMT
Mantis felt he had rested enough, then swam down back into the ocean. It was dark, oppressively dark. It made him feel as though he'd never see light again. He lit up his scales, and then he saw a faint white light off to one direction. He turned off his scales immediately. I hope they didn't see me, he thought, wondering if it was one of the dragons from his village, looking for him. He turned, and saw a purple seawing covered in scars. He didn't recognize her. She flashed, "Hello, I am Squid. Are you lost?" Mantis shrank away. She looked scary. Were the whites of her eyes darker than her irises? He shivered. Her eyes bored into him, searching for an answer to a question. He remembered he had to tell her his name. He fiddled with his claws nervously. He hated aquatic, and he knew this dragon would turn on him the moment she saw he had red light-up scales, and no wings. He couldn't even speak aquatic right, because he needed wings to say certain words. "Mantis..." he flashed haltingly, with pauses between the syllables because he always forgot which scales meant which words. "Not... lost," In this case, he was glad his vocabulary was limited. If she found out where he'd come from, she'd probably drag him back to his village without a second thought. Word count: 230 nightshade |
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Post by nightshade on Oct 18, 2020 18:47:59 GMT
The smaller green fidgeted. The deep water swirled around her. Just below them her tail teased a heavy current. While she waited for a response she judged the little critter in front of her. They were very green, almost in a Rainwing level of vibrancy. She moved in a circle around them, gills flaring. No wings either. Odd.
“Mantis...“[/i] He certainly wasn’t a Seawing, not a full blooded one at least. She could see his poor use of aquatic. ”Not...lost.”[/i] Her huff of dislike covered her maw in bubbles. Squid swam another circle. The currents tugged at her torn wings mercilessly. This dragon, Mantis, was clearly in the wrong place. At least he’s not dying or something. The Seawing growled in annoyance. Her claws raked the empty water in front of her. She swam away for a moment, then returned. A huge creature swam past, ignoring her snarls. Do you require help returning to the surface? So we may speak properly, your aquatic is abysmal.[/i] Squid flashed brighter than necessary.
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Post by Mantis Shrimp on Oct 18, 2020 19:06:35 GMT
Mantis saw instantly the dislike on her face as soon as she noticed how different he looked. I knew she'd hate me, he thought sadly. He waited for a response, hoping he wouldn't have to translate anything too complicated. The dragons in his village hadn't bothered to teach him any aquatic, so he had to teach himself. Not only was he bad at speaking because he couldn't say certain words, he had a hard time knowing if he was saying the right words at all. "Do you require help returning to the surface? So we may speak properly, your aquatic is abysmal. Mantis felt shame rise up inside him, followed by defensiveness. It wasn't his fault that the other dragons hadn't cared enough to teach him aquatic! He nodded. Going to the surface to talk was a good idea. He remembered what she'd said again, then shook his head. He didn't need any help. He swam up to the surface, and waited for her to join him. He nodded at the island. "Let's go there to talk," he said. He was glad his Dragon wasn't as bad as his Aquatic. He swam over to the island, and pulled himself onto it. He fidgeted with the end of his tail nervously. "I'm Mantis Shrimp, but you can call me Mantis."
Word count: 219
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Post by nightshade on Oct 19, 2020 18:17:56 GMT
The green dragon shook his head, apparently he didn’t need help getting back to the surface. He turned to swim to the surface on his own. Squid waited a moment, then followed. As she swam the water got progressively lighter with sunlight. Soon she no longer needed to light her scales. Finding enough light to swim easily. As the surface neared she slowed her pace, coming to a stop beside the green dragon. After pointing to an island he said ”Let’s go there to talk.” While he swam to the small island, Squid surveyed the area. No other dragons in sight. For now. The Seawing pulled herself onto the island with ease. The green dragon was already there. Holding the end of his tail nervously. Squid shook herself free of the water droplets. An ocean breeze tugged at her torn wings. Why must this wind be so aggravating? She ran a circle around the island, double checking for any signs of danger. After a minute or so she returned to stand in front of the other dragon. "I'm Mantis Shrimp, but you can call me Mantis." Squid growled threateningly. ”What kind of Seawing name is that? And would you like to tell me what you are doing on Seawing territory with those red scales of yours? Her voice burned with accusation and judgement. No Seawing she’s ever known has had red scales. As well as the abnormal buds where his wings should have been.
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Post by Mantis Shrimp on Oct 19, 2020 18:45:01 GMT
Mantis shrunk as she growled. Was she angry with him? Mantis knew he should have just ran as soon as he'd seen her. "What kind of Seawing name is that? And would you like to tell me what you're doing on Seawing territory with those red scales of yours?" Mantis dipped his head, trying to look as nonthreatening as possible. He swallowed nervously, then replied. "Uh, a Mantis shrimp is a kind of shrimp that lives underwater, and I kind of look like one," Mantis liked his name. It was the only part about him he did like. He looked away from Squid, and answered her second question. "I don't know why I have red scales! I wish I didn't, then maybe the other dragons wouldn't hate me," Mantis swallowed. I will not cry in front of a total stranger! he told himself fiercely, looking up at the sky. He spoke quickly. "I am a Seawing, though! I'm on Seawing territory because that's where I live! You saw me breathing underwater, and I have webbed talons!" He lifted a talon to display the webs, then remembered the bright yellow they were and put his talon back down. Yellow isn't a color Seawings are supposed to have either, he thought sadly. Everything about me is weird and different.Word count: 217 nightshade |
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Post by nightshade on Oct 24, 2020 0:07:31 GMT
The dragon shrunk, obviously trying to avoid any further aggravation on Squid’s end. The larger Seawing lowered her wings and flared them out. An ugly snarl wrinkled her young face. "Uh, a Mantis shrimp is a kind of shrimp that lives underwater, and I kind of look like one." Squid thrashed her tail angrily. Upset that she’d made a mistake, thinking that Mantis Shrimp wasn’t a proper Seawing name. He wouldn’t meet her gaze as he spoke. This dragon is wreck, and ridiculously incompetent. "I don't know why I have red scales! I wish I didn't, then maybe the other dragons wouldn't hate me." Squid rolled her eyes. She snapped her jaws in his face. The sound of her maw snapping shut echoed in her ears. "I am a Seawing, though! I'm on Seawing territory because that's where I live! You saw me breathing underwater, and I have webbed talons!" The bright yellow between his talons was an even stranger color than the red of his glow scales. Squid allowed a low rumble to vibrate through her chest. She stepped forward, invading Mantis’ personal space.
“Well, let’s take you to [unnamed Seawing Queen here] and see if she believes that story of yours.” Squid span a circle around the smaller dragon. Sand and grit spraying into the air from the speed of her turn. “Don’t even think of running, I’ll catch you. Then you won’t get an audience with the Queen, I’ll throw you in the cells myself.”
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Post by Mantis Shrimp on Oct 24, 2020 2:43:26 GMT
Mantis whimpered when Squid growled. He wondered if she would attack him. She took a step towards him, and he shrank back. If she attacked, he didn't know what they'd do. Mantis was rubbish at fighting. "Well, let's take you to ______ and see if she believes that story of yours. Mantis wondered if she had the authority to bring him straight to the queen. Well, if she didn't, he could call her bluff. He stood his ground. "Don't even think of running, I'll catch you. Then you won't get an audience with the Queen, I'll throw you in the cells myself." Mantis tilted his head. was she important enough to throw him in a cell? He swallowed. "No, I'll go. Take me to the Queen. I'll tell her my story and you can see that I really am a Seawing." He wondered if he'd be kicked out of the tribe. Where would I go? he thought. Well, it didn't matter now. He walked next to Squid and tried to look brave, despite how his talons were shaking. He ran a talon nervously down the fin that poked out of his chest. Each of the spines was spiked out, showing how scared he felt. Word count: 204 nightshade |
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Post by nightshade on Oct 26, 2020 19:52:33 GMT
"No, I'll go. Take me to the Queen. I'll tell her my story and you can see that I really am a Seawing." Squid huffed, pleased he was coming quietly. Not that couldn’t drag his ass if necessary. Glancing at him she’d guess him to be maybe two thirds her weight. And in the water even less. The only issue would be if he flew, but since he had no wings, there was no problem. As she slid back into the water she motioned for him to follow with her tail. Squid swam a couple hundred feet, giving the other dragon space to swim. It wasn’t her job to deal with odd dragons. It wasn’t her job to take dragons to the queen. But it was her job as a Seawing to protect her tribe and as a guard to protect her charge. This dragon was a huge question mark. A threat both ways. She was going to take him to the queen and let her settle the issue. “Follow me Mantis Shrimp. And try to keep up.” She knew this part of the Bay. She knew it well. Something about it drew her here often. Squid would have no problem take the strange dragon through it to get to the palace. And from there, to the queen. She set a fast pace, leaving no room to slow down.
word count 235
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Post by Mantis Shrimp on Oct 26, 2020 21:14:00 GMT
Mantis followed the imposing dragon into the water. He considered swimming for it. Other dragons tended to underestimate how fast he could swim because he didn't have wings to catch the currents, but because he was so small, he could fit through gaps other dragons would have to swim around. And if the area was unfamiliar to the other dragons, he could use his antennae to sense currents the other dragons were unaware of. He'd been able to win a few races that way. Squid turned to him, and said, "Follow me Mantis shrimp. And try to keep up." Mantis felt a small surge of indignation, then decided against arguing. If Squid thought he was slower than he was, he might have an opportunity to escape if he decided he needed to. Mantis nodded. Squid started to swim. She swam quickly, but Mantis could keep up. He followed her, wondering what the Seawing palace would look like. He'd never been anywhere other than his small village. He'd never even seen any other tribes that weren't Seawings! Mantis wanted to ask Squid what the palace was like, but he supposed he'd see soon enough, and Aquatic was hard when you're swimming. Word count: 200 nightshadeOOC - we could make a new thread by the palace (or not idc) |
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