[CC] Grand Display - Siren

Strength Trail

The faintest hum of static energy served as a beacon of sorts for Siren, the young hybrid drifting towards its source; his mind constantly touching that of F.E.A.R, for though he was loath to leave his riders side, he needed to do this, to prove he was strong enough. The faint spark to his left, caught his attention, his aurora flickering as he started to descend; his target was around somewhere, amongst the coils he call his home. Landing, he once more touched F.E.A.R's mind, both seeking reassurance and letting him know he was alright; before slowly descending into the nest of coils that Android dwelled.

The emissary, looked up at the intruder, before returning to his 'feast' devouring the loose wires, his body glitching every few moments. Siren slinked closer, before pulling himself up to his full height waiting for the other male to awknowledge him; but when Android continued to ignore him, his aurora flared brighter for a moment; opening his mouth, Siren began to sing, eerie and haunting, and enticing enough for the emissary to level his full attention on the intruder, tail lashing as he prepared himself. Siren narrowed his eyes, trying to detect Androids health, and even magical abilities as the last notes of his song fades; he knew the emissary was strong, but he was not prepared for the brightness of the thunder magic Android possesed and it was enough to stun him. Android didn't hesitate, slipping over the wires and tackling the other male, the force and Siren's own immobility gave the older male the force to topple Siren. Siren yelped, trying to slip out from Android, tail lashing ineffectively as he tried to free himself. Panic started to set in, and instinct took over his form fading as he went formless, and managing to escape Androids grasp.

Reforming, Siren attempted to strike back, his claws striking off the armor that covered Androids arms; not missing a beat the emissary locked claws, pulling the youngster off balance, his eyes gleaming as power arced between them; refusing to yeild though, Siren shifted tactics, coiling around the other dragon and using his back claws in an attempt to trap him. The emissary shited going strangely still, the lack of resistance confusing Siren, hesitantly he 'looked' back at Android, only to see nothing in the body, no sign of the magic from before.

A flicker from the other side had Siren turning, eyes widening as another Android appeared, not even hesitating, he lunged, releasing the inert body to strike out at Android... who vanished as the youngster was about to hit, his momentum enough to send him into a tumble amongst the wires and discarded machinery. A chuckle came from behind him, and Siren straightned to see Android's body moving again, a quick check showed him that the stunning brightness was back; too late he remembered that thunder dragons could leave their body, and create basic holograms.

This time Siren didn't respond with an immediate attack, the emmissary was simply to strong and had far more experiance than he did, and his own control over magic was minimal, part of him wished that F.E.A.R was here, but the other part was determined to show his strength to Android. Finally the emissary retaliated, his coils glowing as lightning surged through, Siren knew what he was about to do, but, if he timed it right, maybe he could get the upper hand.

His eyes narrowed as Android moved slightly, launching a powerful lightning bolt at him, and sustaining it; trying not to think Siren responded, pulling on his dark magic rto go formless, and immediatly moving towards Android, he could feel the lightning all around him; rematerialising behind the older dragon, Siren struck out, hitting him at the back of his head, and forcing the lightning to stop. Sheer exhaustion had him dropping to the wire covered floor, breathing hard, waiting for a retaliating strike. "You passed." The two words, spoken with complete calm had Siren looking up, confusion, how had the emmissary known. "Your song said everything." Android responded, turning away full and settling amongst the wires and ignoring Siren completely.

Siren blinked, mentailly reaching for F.E.A.R to tell him the good news, even Androids dismissal didn't bother him; now he just had to do the other two trails, but he felt ready for them.

WC: 727

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Flexibility Trail

Siren panted, the blazing sun glaring down over his long body, the black coloration absorbing the heat, crippling in its intensity as the dragon waited for its companion to arrive, he sung a three notes each one full of impatience as he tried to escape the blistering sun; so far the only form of shelter they'd found was a single rock, and it was far to small for him, F..E.A.R though was able to find some relief from the sun, and they were doing their best to soothe Siren. Shifting he hummed a single note, fiull of impatience as he tried to get more comfortable, F.E.A.R reached out to stroke him. "Easy." they cajoled, and after moment, Siren quietened down somewhat.

After a while heavy footfalls began to echo, and Siren looked up, closing his eyes slightly to peer through the heat haze, eventually he spotted his 'companion' for the day, a fire/earth hybrid who looked completely at home in the desert; his back laden with huge sacks as he neared them. F.E.A.R looked over the other dragon as he came up to them, Siren meanwhile was just glad that Raphael had arrived. "Raphael?" F.E.A.R asked, the dragon nodding as he knelt down to allow the rider to move the sacks. This was their job for today, Raphael had brough some needed supplies part of the way over the desert, the last leg needed to be completed by Siren and F.E.A.R, with the other dragon leading the way; though it was more than possible that Raphael would be able to make the journey himself, the challenge was for Siren to be flexible enough to work in an environment that didn't suit him, and it would provide valuble experiance for both the aurora dragon and his rider.

After some careful manuvering of sacks, Siren stood up, he'd already learned that flying wasn't easy in the heat, so he would need to move over the ground instead, and if need be he could float for a while. After making sure they all had water, F.E.A.R clambered up onto Siren's back, and after amking sure the sacks wouldn't rub too much, urged Siren to follow the other dragon; at first he stumbled, unused to the extra weights on his back and the shifting sands beneath his claws; eventually he got into a decent rhythm, finding that by quietly singing to himself helped distract him from the heat, his aurora flickering as he moved.

Travelling through the desert was not easy, the sands constantly shifting and eating into what energy he had, water, after a caution from Raphael was to be used sparingly, for the water bags they had had to last until they reached the oasis and the settlement; not only that the sand kept blowing into Siren's eyes. Thankfully, as a thunder hybrid he could see other dragons health, which in this case meant he could track Raphael as the other dragon led the way.

After several miles, he hissed out a whimper, the burning sands starting to bother him until he was literally hopping over the sands; his path erratic. "Fly." F.E.A.R whispered, trying to soothe the dragon; Siren shook his head at first, flight taking too much energy, but the blistering heat of the sands was to much and he lifted of the ground, not in true flight, just enough to keep his claws from the sands. Sighing in relief, he nodded at Rapheal who had slowed down to wait for him, and as the other dragon continued to lead the way, he started humming again.

By floating over the sands, Siren found he could cover more ground, but though he no longer fought the shifting sands, he did need to land on a regular basis to 'cool down' ... and to avoid any sandstorms that whipped up. F.E.A.R had long since used up their supply of water to help regulate Siren's body temperature, and that Siren didn't have much left either; they could only hope they were almost at the oasis. A faint speck of color had Siren emitting several notes, forming into a song of relief, which only grew in sound as the lush date palm trees which provided shelter for the smaller plants and the small settlement that lived there. Though Siren longed to speed over, F.E.A.R kept him in check, for the dragon was exhausted, and what energy he had they needed to proceed slowly.

Finally Siren landed next the the huge oasis, his body finally sheltered from the sun, eager hands ran over his body divesting him of the sacks he's carried, F.E.A.R had moved slightly out of the way, though he kept a hand on Siren as the dragon panted. Once the last of the sacks were gone, Siren limped to the waters edge, sipping slowly as Raphael approached, the carcass of a desert beast been dragged along. "Well done, this is thanks from the settlement for delivering the sacks." He said, dropping the carcass next to Siren as he lay down near them, taking a drink as well before speaking. "Rest as long as you want." Siren simply nodded, dangling his front claws in the water as the sun finally started to set.

WC: 870

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Providence Trail

Siren stared at the gaping maw of a cavern entrance, huge stalagmites giving the impression of teeth, ready to snap shut at any time dragging anyone foolish enough to get caught near it into the dark, unexplored depths. Shaking himself, he slithered closer to the entrance, trying to ignore the dark impression the cave seemed to give off; he supposed it didn't help that the name of the mountain range he was in was the 'Doomscale Peaks'; despite its dark name, the majority of these caves hadn't been explored, making it a perfect place for him for to complete his providence trail. Finally slipping into its dark embrace, Siren whistled severel notes, the sound both calming him, and making his aurora pattern glow brighter, lighting the cavern walls slightly; and startling a swarm of bats into flight; knowing they wouldn't leave the cave yet, he moved deeper into the cave.

Deeper and deeper into the depths he moved, following the paths as best as possible, though the amount of times he had to backtrack due to dead ends was slowly getting to him, though he had found a random satchel down one; though unfortnetely it contained nothing but rotten food; still at least there was no sign of its owner. He halted as he came to a split, his attention drawn to the right, where light flickered in the distance, warm and inviting; it could be a trap, but.... if there was another living soul down here, maybe they could explore together? As he headed towards the light, he felt F.E.A.R reach out to him to see if he was okay; Siren responded with reassurance, just as the path widened into a larger cavern... and a flickering fire in the center.

Slipping into the cavern, he looked around for anyone who would of lit the fire, not seeing anyone he edged closer, only to halt when a hiss sounded from the fire itself. Another dragon shifted on the loose rocks it was resting on, the stones glowing from the heat even as fire flickered over its form; Siren sung a query at him, but his only response was another hiss as the dragon coiled back up into a tight ball. Moving past the his hissing fire, Siren continued onwards, though the other drake hadn't helped, his fires would provide a good way to mark Siren's way back... if it was still there when he was finished.

Interestingly, the further into the mountain he delved, the less daunting it seemed, though Siren didn't know why, he could only assume it was because he was getting better at sensing where he was at, or more accurtately, he could sense where the fire drake was behind him, the energy acting as a beacon in the gloom. His own aurora kept the area he was in lit enough to see most things, huge spiders and their webs, small gems scattered over the ground; the occasional large stalagmite that hung low enough that if he hadn't seen it, he would easily of walked into it.

The next cavern he slipped into was the largest he'd seen so far, the ceiling was covered in moss that glowed, their bioluminence lighting the cavern and what lay on the walls; immense wall murals covered the entire cavern, parts were faded, but what remained seemed to gleam as the light caught some of the pigments. In the center, a small spring bubbled, almost happily in the silence, its waters crystal clear. The whole cavern seemed tranquil and Siren decided to rest for a bit, settling next to the waters and closing his eyes, humming in time with the gurgling waters.

Siren woke suddenly, his head raising up as a strange sound intruded; he looked around the cavern warily, though it in itself hadn't changed at all. Narrowing his eyes he whistled a single note, tensing at the response; the earth reverbrating as the growl carried through the caverns, coming from deeped within, and giving the sense of something huge that waited below.

For a single moment Siren considered looking for whatever was there, but as another growl sounded he shook his head, he's mapped quite a bit of this cave system, and F.E.A.R would not be happy if he got hurt. Turning back the way he came, he slipped out of the cavern and headed upwards heading for the exit; for now he was done exploring Doomscale Peak. WC: 739