the building of amicus

Jorah hadn't thought he was all that scared of things in his life, but when he, Irinwe, and Flaxia had come across an incredibly shiny and dangerous looking creature out in the sands of Issiq, he backed up right away. In front of the three creatures stood a blue and pink dragon, all scales and danger. And, for some odd reason, a welcoming smile. It was when the dragon spoke that he hid behind Flaxia, who stomped one paw in a reassuring intimidation attempt.

"Hello! Er, hello? I'm Shale. Really just exploring is all, I was going to find some shells out by the beach of some planet, ride some rockin' waves, but I must have taken a wrong turn somewhere." The dragon - Shale, glanced about at the sand surrounding them, and completely ignored the confusion and fear of the three Xiuni in front of her.

Eventually, to spare the other two from further confusion, Irinwe spoke up. "...This is the desert, you know. It's hard to take a wrong turn, the nearest ocean is a fair bit away from here."

Shale sighed. "Really? Well, it's not all that hard for me, though usually I'm more accurate than this. Must be the first time on this planet..." The dragon stepped closer to the trio of Xiuni, who didn't step back - although Jorah certainly wanted to.

Flaxia let out a breath at the side of the others. It was really all the sharp scales and all the shine that was scaring them all. Things in the desert often tried to blend in. To see a creature so obviously other, so different, and not related to the DPIP, was immensely new for all three of the Issiq natives. "Did your ship crash, then?" she asked. She might still be new to understanding all the possible technology out there but she was fairly sure that the time and space traveling tech that their resident researcher Moonbeam kept working on was quite unique. Otherwise, he wouldn't be trying to replicate it, would he?

"No, I, uh, just kind of walked. Or glided, in a way. Through the Chronoscape, you know! Gotta find all the best shells, and a lot of the cool ones aren't hiding at home. They're out there in the universe." Shale shrugged, glanced about, and set off walking in a seemingly random direction.

Slowly becoming less scared and more confused and curious, the three colonists followed. Jorah found the bravery to speak up this time. "We, uh, we don't know. Visitors here are still a recent development."

"Oh!" Shale walked, and the others followed along, Flaxia in the front and Jorah in the back, with Irinwe as the shorter figure between them. "Well surely you all have dragons around here, then, they could explain all about it!"

"Not the kinds of dragons I know about," Irinwe said, not-there brows furrowed and head tilted. "There's some species out there that are kind of lizard like. But none of them are as shiny as you."

"Well thank you!" Shale grinned, revealing teeth that looked as hard as metal. Was there any part of this creature that wasn't sharp and scary? Besides, oddly, their personality, of course. "But I suppose dragons like I know aren't everywhere. I suppose we just haven't gotten here yet."

Jorah imagined several hundred identical sharp scaled creatures arriving at the borders of Issiq, and shivered. Perhaps it was for the best that they hadn't arrived yet. Although, hanging out with this one hadn't been too awful so far. "You said you collect shells?" he asked.

Shale seemed determined to walk all the way to the beach, from his hurried pace. "I do! The water means everything to me, really. And I like making things with the shells I gather up, though it's hard, cause sometimes I scratch the shells with my claws. But I try my best!" A cactus was ahead of Shale. Instead of going around it, he walked right through it. Little thorns went everywhere, and Jorah, Irinwe, and Flaxia jumped back to give the sharp objects a wide berth. Spooky.

"I bet your stuff looks great when it's finished," Irinwe said with a smile, having warmed up to the large dragon as they had walked. "Do you have anything on you now that I could see?"

Shale gasped in delight and began talking on and on about the cool things he made with his shells - necklaces, bottles filled with shells, all sorts of delightful creations. After perhaps twenty  minutes of conversation, the two groups parted ways, and while Shale continued off towards the sea, the three colonists turned back in the direction of home and began the long hike back. The group discussed gathering up some supplies on the way back.

Oddly enough, when the buildings that led underground - the buildings that marked home - appeared, Flaxia nearly tripped over something buried in the sand. Jorah helped to balance her, and then all three Xiuni glanced down. Jorah began digging, and Irinwe used her powerful claws to help. Together, the group managed to unearth a box. Inside were a bunch of colorful shells.

"Did she leave them here? Oh no, we've got to go deliver them," Irinwe fretted.

"We've got other things we have to do, though," Flaxia reminded gently as she could. "Moonbeam's research won't go anywhere without us."

"Yes, I know... but what if..." Irinwe closed her eyes, held the box of shells in her claws, and had a brilliant idea. "Moonbeam needs us to test out the devices he makes, right? We could take one, and use it to travel to wherever the odd dragon is now!"

"It might not work," Jorah said. "But there's no difference trying to go there versus anywhere else we might think to travel to."

It wasn't a half bad idea, and as the trio of colonists returned back inside the underground building, each one of them had a good feeling that they'd be seeing the odd, shiny Shale once again.