The first dragon-hawk to enter the hive did not do so with full intent of it, but it was far more planned than the first acquisitions of the hive. It was certainly smarter than the drakes it fed upon, smart enough indeed to pick at their edges, taking away one by one the tiny morsels of meat, cracking their shells and roasting them once it returned to its nest. It was much larger than they - and, more importantly, it had realised that this was an [i]especially[/i] productive group! Seemingly, despite its picking away, there were more drake-termites to feed upon every sunrise!

It had figured out the why of it not too long ago. A presence, something pressing on it when it got too close to the center - which threatened to eat it, not its body, but something more integral to it. This was, at least, what the dragon envisioned. Something it sought to avoid, desperately desperately.

Yet... the more it sensed this presence. The less true this was. Was it being eaten already? It didn't know. It didn't [i]feel[/i] like it was being eaten. Part of it wished to figure out the truth of the matter. Curiosity - lethal to most, but the curiosity grew, until it one day decided to satisfy its curiosity, and to flee if it was indeed attacked by the presence.

So, finding the drake-termites again, it flew toward their centre instead of away. The presence grew, again, but it did not eat it... the further it went, the more it discovered signs of other drakes. Drake-sloths. Drake-moles. Drake-boar. How many had it eaten? Why was it not being eaten too?

It found the presence eventually. Not another dragon, or even another drake. This one... this one stood on two legs. It had no wings, only one pair of arms, both slightly too long for its body, and not even armour upon its flesh. It had some of the look of a dragon, and indeed much of the presence of one - but not a dragon. Not nearly so unkind. Not... unfriendly? Unthinkable.

But it did not eat the dragon-hawk. Wordlessly, it bade it land nearby, the drake-termites it had eaten moving aside to form a space for it. With great caution, it took its position, suspicion rippling through its body. The moment the presence acted, it was ready to lash out and take flight again, plasma roiling in it in preparation... but nothing. It held its position, held one of its arms out, asked the dragon-hawk to come closer. Every step closer seemed a step into greater peril - but no. Even once its head had touched its clawed hand, the presence remained calm, claws grazing over its head... jolts of enjoyment. What? What was this? Why was the scratching nice? It was like being groomed by a mate, but different - not for mating, only for bonding. It did not want to mate.

It wanted to bond. The presence would not eat the dragon-hawk, no... that had been an error of its child self, when control was unknown and intolerable to it, and it could not touch anything more than the near-mindless drake-termites to begin with. Its will was greater now - so too was its mental touch. It could- but it would not. It would never, not now they knew each other. The Presence was a friend. The Presence was an ally.

The Presence needed more dragons to join it. Dragon-hawks... it knew of nests, yes. It could find them, bring them. Enhance the Presence's protection, ensure they could hunt for more and more, and in exchange, the dragon-hawks would have more of their fill than they'd ever dreamed of...

Perhaps it had been eaten, after all? Oh, well.

[hr]

[color=a187be]'How long has this threat been in the vicinity?'[/color]

[color=ed145b]'Oh, [i]weeks[/i] now. We divined it from the Charmed Lord's Skeins, and sent some scouts into the area. Two returned just yesterday, reporting [i]quite[/i] a few dragons clustering in an area. [i]Ah[/i], not a faint expedition, Seneschal...'[/color]

[color=a187be]'Clearly. Any understanding of why?'[/color]

[color=ed145b]'[i]Hhhmmmmm...[/i] I did some more study into the matter, and Syn'veey'n did a bit of searching through the Skeins, and [i]she[/i] was the one who sensed a great presence there. They've drawn to a [i]leader,[/i] believe it or not!'[/color]

[color=a187be]'A leader... dragon?'[/color]

[color=ed145b]'[i]Human.[/i]'[/color]

[color=a187be]'[i]Really...?[/i] A human that can command the feral dragons... how rare.'[/color]

[color=ed145b]'Un[i]heard[/i] of! And not [i]quite[/i] a match for the aether-dragons, unfortunately.'[/color]

[color=a187be]'Still impressive. Did you reward yours?'[/color]

[color=ed145b]'Oh [i]yes,[/i] Seneschal! I've pinned her to the floor with a [i]rusted blade.[/i] She'll be there for a [i]while[/i] yet-'[/color]

[color=ed1c24]SHRKK-Pltltl[/color]

[color=ed145b]'[i]Huaahhhnnn-![/i] Ahh... Syn'veey'n... phh[i]leasure[/i] to see you again... sh-so soon?'[/color]

[color=630460]"I got booooored. You need to be more creatiiiive."[/color]

[color=71797E]Clang-Tr-r-r-r[/color]

[color=ed145b]'Sorry, [i]dear,[/i] I'll... hooh that stings nicely... I'll find something a bit more [i]interesting[/i] to add to it...'[/color]

[color=a187be]'Enough flirting, you two. Seer, Familiar, you two will serve the purpose of bringing this... [i]human[/i] into our fold. Assuming you're right about his nature, that is.'[/color]

[color=630460]"I don't make mistaaaakes. Stop criticizing meeeeee. Just punish me for being wroooong."[/color]

[color=a187be]'No. Shamhat... you know what to do.'[/color]

[color=ed145b]'Mmh... and may the Charmed Lord's will be done, Seneschal...'[/color]