"It would be a couple of days at most. I know you have the egg, and I'd make arrangements for someone to watch things. Remember Iskra?" Tala said. "My grandmother" Larek added, lest Nyx forgot. Continuing, Tala brushed a bit of dust off her arm. "From what I understand, it isn't too dangerous, but it should keep you two from getting too bored. Plus, I think this may be the first time that females outnumbered the lone male in an adventuring party, at least, in the dracon lands." "Sure thing. I'll be sure to bring my gate stone" Orna told him, a bit nervous. Normally, she sought out the comforts of home and the bedroom when she was nervous or stressed, but now, she only wanted to know if she was with egg or not. It was one of the few times in her life when knowledge, not pleasure, would bring her relief. "Right now, it is more important that you and the egg are kept safe" Kos explained, feeling protective of her. (Chicken maybe?)

Nyx listened, and nodded, content to know that things would be alright if they left. "My first adventure ended up with two females and a male, of course" She said with amusement, "If you count the fact that Larek came with Ceax and his mother, then it was equal" She said "It sounds like a good job, and if the egg can be looked after while we help, I'll be happy" "I'll go check the fences now" tran said, heading back out to do just that, and had soon returned, once more washing his feet, and ready, told Orna that he was ready to go. Sasha smiled, "We are more then safe, with you" She said brightly, "Did you want breakfast?" When Vaex sat down, Hermia did as well, and said in response to his question, "Chicken. I hope it tastes good"

(Wow. You've been way more active than I have been here. Than again, I have a lot of PM RPs, so that might explain it, in part.) "Oh, Iskra has much experience with eggs. She's still proud of having laid Adykon's egg, you know." "She always goes on about it, as if she has a share in what he did later" Larek added. Orna had put on some of her best clothes and washed herself up. She wanted to look her best before she was examined. They were to go to Minbenthac, where Vespion stayed. He had taken on something of the role of a family doctor for this sort of thing. "Alright, Tran, let's go." She took his hand and they teleported to that major city. "Oh, that would be great, thanks!" Kos replied. The talk of food made him hungry, after all. "I'm sure it is" he said, digging into it, getting some chicken on his snout. "Er... there's meat all over my face, isn't there?"

(Yeah, but I have a few PM roleplays too) Nyx listened as they talked, mildly amused at it. "I'm fine with Iskra keeping an eye on the egg, if she is happy to do it. When that's organised, we can be ready to go soon" Tran looked around when they appeared at minbenthac, getting his bearings quickly and looked to Orna, giving her a smile, and giving her hand a squeeze, because he could tell that she was nervous. "I love you" he said The food still warm, Sasha uncovered it, gathering them plates each "it's all ready" she said with a smile Hermia laughed and nodded, "you do" she said taking that to mean that the food was good, she smiled at him "

(Almost 10,000. Cool!) "I can have her over in an hour, is that alright?" Tala asked. "It is indeed. I'll get my sword" Larek replied, moving to go do that. "I love you too, Tran... but now..." she returned the squeeze and looked around the city, still unused to the crowds and the feeling of the cold streets. Hopping from foot to foot, she found some warmer sands, then looked around for the great temple, where Vespion was. Remembering that it was on top of a hill, she saw a large, rectangular structure up there. "That must be it!" she told him, pointing the way. Kos dug into the food, eating with a far more voracious appetite than he thought he had. He soon realized that he was making a bit of a mess. "Er... sorry about that, dear." He wondered if Veax or Larek did the same. Kos was sure Caex was neater for his family, now that he had a son to set an example for. "You always make it so good" Veax told her. "I can wash the dishes, you can relax, love."

(Yup, so close!) Nyx nodded, gathering up the plates from breakfast, she set about washing them, and putting then away. She took the time to make a fruit and nut platter, simply because she thought it would be good to do so, before going to collect her gear. She kept it all in good condition, cleaning it regularly as well as maintaining her training. She slipped on the modified knife belt, slipping her knives and daggers into their sheaths on it, slinging her bow and quiver over her shoulder, checked everything was secure and didn't hinder her movements. tran nodded, and he started that way, moving through the crowd with the ease of one who had lived there. Sasha giggled and said "that's okay" she said, while she ate in a more...refined mannor. "It means the foods good" "It's alright" hermia said, "the cookings not work if you enjoy doing it, so the dishes are no hassle."

(Over 10,000! You did it. lol) Larek had his sword and dagger. He tied the weapons to his waist, after making sure they were both in good shape. Both sheaths were in good shape as well. After taking a few practice swings, he nodded, confident he was well armed. "Alright, I think I'm ready. Let's just wait for Iskra to come over" he told Nyx. Some time later, Tala teleported back with an older female. She still kept much of her appearance, but she was noticeably more aged than either Nyx or Tala, if one knew what to look for. "Hello both of you! Tala told me everything. Where's the egg? I'll keep it safe. Wouldn't want my great-grandchild to be anything less than safe." Soon, Orna and Tran reached the temple. It was eerily quiet. Orna saw that the doors were open, but everything was seemingly empty, save for a guard. Whispering, he told them "There's a major rite in progress. If you have any business, you'll have to wait. You can watch, but say nothing. They brought a dragon out for this one." "Oh, gods, yes it is!" Kos told her, getting uncharacteristically enthusiastic about it. "I truly appreciate it, Sasha." "It's still nice for me to clean the dishes anyway" Veax said.

Nyx nodded, and sat down while they waited, but when Tala reappeared for Iskra, smiling, and saying "hello. the egg is just through here. Thank you for doing this." She said, as she show her the egg, nestled safely. Tran waited as the guard spoke to them, quietly and looked to Orna, "Do you want to watch, or should we come back later?" he asked, and in respect of the rite going on, and to not anger the guard. He was happy either way, but figured it was better waiting, so that they could find out as soon as possible. It made Sasha feel good, hearing that. She wasn't a master at household chores and things, but she tried her best. "I like doing it for you" She said, "I'm glad you do" Hermia didn't want to argue about it, so she just nodded, "Alright"

Iskra gave the couple a little hug each. "Think nothing of it, dear. I'm not such a prolific breeder anymore. Not like I used to be anyway. It's always nice to watch an egg again, if only for a day or so." "We'll be back as soon as we can. Maybe a day, perhaps longer. Help yourself to anything in the house" Larek told his grandmother. "I'd like to see it. We can speak to Vespion the moment it ends" Orna replied. The guard led them to a large chamber where a large crowd was gathered. True enough, Vespion was performing a ceremony, with some assistants. One assistant held a bowl filled with water which was to be mixed with a bit of the dragon's blood. Another such assistant was holding out a large, jeweled circlet for the dragon to be crowned with. But the figure which caught Orna's attention the most was the young dragon himself, a red-skinned creature she had known growing up. "Toby?!" She immediately clapped her hands over her mouth, not wanting to disturb anyone. Although she was shushed, the dragon himself craned his head over to the sound. Forgetting himself, he headed over to the others. "Orna, I..." the priest holding the crown let it go, missing Toby's head. It fell from his hands into the bowl, splashing them with water. A loud gasp was heard from the crowd. The ceremony was ruined. "Is there anything else I can do for you? Don't be shy to ask" Kos replied. After cleaning up, Veax decided to get in a bit more guitar practice. "You ever want lessons, Hermy, you just let me know. I've been thinking about learning how to actually read music. Oh, did I tell you that? I can play it, but I've never really learned to read it."

Nyx smiled and said, "I made a fruit and nut platter, that you can use for snacks or whatever. My mother taught me to always have something handy for company. I know the egg is in good hands, thank you" she said again Tran had never been to a cermonmy, so he wasn't to sure what to expect. He didn't know what this ceremony was for and so was curious. He wasn't smfast enough to stop Orna speaking, as he recognised the dragon. As Toby came over, tran could see what was going to happen, and grimacdd. He figured this was a bad thing. "Uh..." He shifted, just slightly so he was in front of Orna, just in case there were any repercussions to this, although he doubted Toby would let any harm come to Orna. Sasha shook her head and said "there's jothing that I can think of that you can do. I'm good" Hermia shook her head "you've never told me that. You play such lovely music without it, though"

"That's very thoughtful of you, dear. You have my thanks" Iskra replied. "Let's get going then, shall we, aunt Tala?" "Yes. Best get moving on. See you later, Iskra!" Tala gave Larek instructions on how to use the gate stone in the case. Tala was not powerful enough to teleport all three unaided, but she put her hand on the stone and cast a spell as Larek concentrated on Tala's position. The effect was that, since he was holding onto his aunt and Nyx, all three were teleported to the desert, quite a few kilometers away. The crowd turned from Toby to Orna. Seeing that they might turn against her, he shielded her with his wings. "This is all my fault! I told you this was a bad idea!" Vespion approached the dragon. "It's not your fault, I was running this ceremony. I take the blame." "Er... couldn't you just restart it?" Orna suggested. "It doesn't work that way." He looked at her. "Orna is it?" Vespion replied. "Er... yes. I wanted to get examined to see if I have an egg." There was a long pause. "That isn't a good omen or anything is it?" "No, but don't worry much about it. I'll accept the blame for this, as I said. It will probably be a pilgrimage to an ancient holy site or something. The other priests will let me know." "Alright, as you say" Kos replied, stretching and thinking for a moment. "You sure you don't want me to scratch your back or something?" "Well, one doesn't need to be able to read music to play it, but it would make things easier" Veax replied.

Nyx, use to the gate stone travel by now, wasn't surprised to be in the desert. As she looked about, trying to figure out where they were, she relaxed slightly in the warmth, the sand comfortable on her feet. "Where are we, exactly?" Tran watched the crowd warily, knowing that there was too many for him to defend against, but Orna was his, and he would protect her to the best of his abilities. He looked over at the conversation, "Maybe it would be better to go somewhere else? The crowd seems to be a bit riled" "A back scratch would be nice" Sasha said, She was still more comfortable with taking care of others then being taken care of herself, and thus still didn't ask for much. Hermia nodded, "I imagine so. Is it hard to learn to read music?" She asked curiously

(Sorry for the delay! Long story, but I may need to find another job. No, I'm not fired, and will be working in any event, but one of my contractors may go out of business. And isn't this an RP you are currently in, too?) "We're in an ancient ruin, I don't remember its name, but that doesn't really matter much. These ruins date from the old times, when Dememoras was in charge. This isn't his capital, but it is a major site. Probably some sort of temple built underground" Tala explained. "Best to watch for undead or... maybe some guardians. I don't know" Larek replied. "It's probably not like that. Undead magic was much weaker back then, Larek. We may have to fight animated statues. Probably very old and worn by now, but still dangerous." ------------------------------- Vespion addressed the congregation. "I accept complete responsibility for this fiasco, but please allow me a few minutes with these two! The female is a child of Adykon's! She's probably here to see if she's carrying one of his grandchildren!" That hushed the crowd up. ------------------------------- Kos moved over to Sasha's back and began to gently scratch her back, trying to reach whatever spots she found most pleasurable. "How does this feel, my love?" He also nuzzled her neck with his snout, but he refrained from biting her neck. It was not quite the time for that gesture. ------------------------------- "I suppose it must be hard. I've never really tried" Veax admitted.

Center]****[/center]Yes, when I was editing tne sig, it freaked out. Reported it to Mahz, and it was a bug, I think its been fixed now, so I'll add the rest of my roleplays up) At the mention of the undead, Nyx shuddered, remembering the undead that hwd been used back in the city, and what they had had to do. It had been a horrible experience, one she didn't want to experience again. So she was glad when Tala said it was unlikely they would come across any. "Well, at least the statues aren't the undead." She said gratefully It was always interesting to Tran that Adykon's name could elicit such a reaction from people, when to Tran, he was just his father-in-law, no matter his accomplishments. He took Orna's hand, waiting for Vespion to lead them away. It was easy to relax with Kos. Which Sasha did as he scratched her back, finding it very pleasurable, and comforting. "It feels great" she said, "thank you" she smiled, liking the gesture of the nuzzle. Sometimes Kos could just be so sweetr. "Your music is already wonderful, but if you think learning music will make it better, and you want to do it, then you should" Hermia said, giving him a smile

(Was busy. Sorry about that!) "No, but they may be hard to damage" Larek told Nyx. "Not if they are cracked. Still, best that you take the lead. I'm not exactly built to take lots of blows" Tala told her nephew. "Ha! I'll be your shield, if that's what you want" he told her, jokingly. Larek moved in front of them and soon, they were in front of a pair of ancient stone doors. They were cracked and falling off their hinges, and very easy for Larek to pull open, despite their weight. The air from the ruins was not stale, a sign that the doors had been opened in the not too distant past. ----------------------------- Vespion quickly led them to his room, locking the door behind them. "That was close. I'm sure there will be hell to pay, but you two need not suffer it. Now, I assume you are truly with egg, Orna?" "I was hoping you could tell me" She replied. ----------------------------- Kos turned around and gave her a hug, having finished the back scratch. "Anytime, love. I suppose you've taught me to be gentler, at least around you. I never thought my claws could be gentle, but..." he left it there, remembering that he didn't need to fill in every second of their intimate moments with chatter. ----------------------------- "Then I shall do that" Veax replied. "Anyway, I suppose I've been more of an... instinctive person? Intuitive? Never been much for book learning."

Nyx followed behind Larek, wary enough to have a hand ready to grab a dagger or knife. She looked about as they walked, examining the ruins. When they reached the doors, she shifted, watching as Larek removed the doors. showing that the air wasn't stale. More wary now, she listened to see if there was any sound of someone coming to investigate the sound of the removal of the doors. Tran spoke up, figuring that it might help "She said this morning that she felt odd, like there was something growing in her" He said, trying to repeat her words from the morning Sasha returned Kos's hug, feeling safe, and happy in his arms. She looked up as he spoke, and smiled, nodding. She was happy, "We never want to hurt the ones we care about. So, I think being gentler is just instinct" She said after a moment. "My father always said we could learn alot from books. He always encouraged it" Heria said, "But there's lots of ways to learn" She said, "I learned cooking by trail and error, but most of it was just...talent"

Soon enough, the three of them saw a figure shuffling towards them. It was the size and shape of a dracon, but its movements were too robotic, too forced, too uniform. As soon as it was into the light, Larek could see it was a construct, an animated stone statue. This one was already beat up by time and previous intruders. It had cuts all over its gray-brown torso, its hands were missing two fingers on each side, and it seemed barely capable of walking, let alone attacking. "Really? It's just an animat-" Larek was cut off when it swung its stone fist at him, a blow he barely dodged. --------------------- Vespion examined Orna, muttering a bit as he cast a simple magical spell. "You are indeed with child. Rather advanced for you to have just felt it. Still, all seems normal." Orna sighed with relief. "Thank you! Thank you so much!" "You are most welcome, but now there is another issue. Tran, this may seem a bit unusual, but would you be willing to assist me? The other priests will want me to make amends for the error in the liturgy, and I think I know how. Are you good with a sword? We may need to retrieve something from an old ruin." --------------------- "I suppose it is. My father is like that to Aerta. I can't imagine him being like that to other males. At least, to other males who aren't part of our family" Kos explained. --------------------- "I guess that's how it is with me. I was given a guitar, had some lessons, practiced every day... and it just happened" Veax said.

Nyx was wary of the statue, so that when it attacked, she was ready, and stepping back, far enough away that it wouldn't, hopefully, attack her, she threw a dagger towards it, going on instinct more then anything else, not expecting it to do any damage to the animated statue, but figuring it might cause a distraction and give Larek a chance to fight it. Tran smiled, and hugged Orna, happy, but seemed surprised that Vespion asked for his help, retrieving something. "uh. I can hold a sword, and use it enough for defense. I did training with Railing, so he could have a sparing partner" He said, "I suppose I can help, if only to help fix up what happened" Sasha nodded, and was silent for a moment, before saying "I'm glad you can be gentle with me" She smiled, then said "What do you wish to do, today?" "I think that's better" Hermia said thoughtfully, "It shows there was more work, and heart into it, then simply reading the music and playing"

The dagger hit the statue, staggering it for a moment. Larek slashed at it a few times, doing some more damage, but not enough to put it out of action. Fortunately, Tala charged up a spell. "Larek, duck!" She launched a firebolt at it, hitting the cracked sections in front and setting it aflame from the inside-out. The statue collapsed and moved no more. "Should have brought a hammer or something. These things need to be smashed" Larek commented. "Thanks for the throw, Nyx." --------------------------- "I need someone to hold off enemies while I charge my spells. Don't worry if you are hurt, I'll be right behind you to give you a healing spell. Now, I'm sure I can borrow a sword from the guards to give you, but do you use armor in a fight, or rely on agility? Either way is fine" Vespion explained. "And what should I do? I mean... this is big news! I'm gravid!" Orna asked. "Just relax for now. You can stay in my room until this is done" Vespion replied. ------------------------- "Maybe we can work on the farm some more, together, then maybe go for a little swim in the pond?" Kos suggested. ------------------------- "It might help if I could write music, so that others can know what songs I play, even if they aren't around to hear them" Veax replied.