When Fellwing glanced at Garrock's wing, she'd notice immediately that it was no longer covered in those black veins she had seen earlier. Someone must have healed it while he and Skobeloff were separated from the rest of the group, likely through use of moon magic as Stargaze had used on Kyte earlier. Still, it probably better to safe than sorry. Any dragon could use moon magic to heal a wound or stave off an infection if they had access to the correct moon, but it still couldn't replace a reliable and dedicated healer.
"Alright then!" Rudrick said, clapping his front claws together. "The two of them are just in the Stronghold. I don't think they have any patients right now." Without skipping a beat, he turned around and started making his way back towards Snouthold.
Garrock gave a heavy sigh. "Just remember," he mutters as he eyes the drakes. "Whatever nonsense we're about to get into is on you lot." Without another word, he and the other dragons started following after Rudrick.
As they passed the group of mentors and their drakes that Rudrick has previously been hanging out with, the Semscale warrior called over to them. "These guys have just returned from a mission," he said. "I'm taking them to see Heliotrope. I'll be back shortly." The Semscale dragons merely nodded or shouted "Okay, see you in a bit" or something similar in response. However, as Rudrick lead them over to the entrance, the group would just about to be able to hear one of the Semscale dragons give an derisive snort and mutter, "Better you than me, buddy." Attempts to look round and see which dragon said that, however, would give no answers as the Semscale dragons had now turned their backs on the Snouthold and were returning to their training. If Rudrick had heard that little comment, he wasn't showing signs of it as he beckoned them into the building.
The Snouthold is a standard Semscale building, built more to last than to be visually appealing, but there is a certain charm, a feeling of sturdiness and reliability that the House as a whole seems to try and embody. Rudrick leads them down a hallway past several varied rooms, all large and seeming to have different purposes, likely for training drakes in different expertise. Some lessons seem to be going on within, with one room having several drakes looking through different books, and another having some sort of lecture. Rudrick leads the group to the room at the end of the hallway, that from a cursory glance, seems like some sort of labratory, if the potions bottles, herbs and ingredients lining the shelves are anything to go by.
"No, that's far too much, put some of it back," a stern voice called.
A second voice responded, but it was muffled, as if the speaker were holding something in their mouth. After a moment, there was a sound like someone spitting something out in disgust. "Oh moons, I think I swallowed some of the leaves."
"Lucky for you, none of those were toxic," the first voice said. "Try to be more careful next time."
"Is this a bad time?" Rudrick said.
Further inside the room, the group sees two dragons, one a longtooth dragon and the other a winged drake. The longtooth dragon has quite a striking appearance, as while her scales are mostly dark green, they're also speckled with a deep crimson, bringing to mind the gem bloodstone. In fact, almost half of this dragon's face is covered in these red scales. Her eyes are a reddish-orange, and she's wearing a short green shawl with a some purple flowers stitched into the fabric. Upon hearing Rudrick's voice she glances over her shoulder, first at him, then at the dragons accompanying him. She doesn't say anything right away, but there is a weariness in her eyes.
The winged drake is on the chubbier side, with quite stubby wings and legs. He's a reddish-pink in colour, accented with gold. One of his eyes is yellow, the other blue, and he's wearing a necklace made of colourful flowers. There is a small pile of herbs on the floor by his feet, which everyone can assume he has spat out. His tongue is lolling out of his mouth, clearly still affected by the bitter taste of the plants. "Urgh, I think my tongue is going numb," he says after a moment.
The green and red dragon, who everyone can assume is Heliotrope, gives a sigh. "How about we take a break for now, Coryn?" she said. "I'll deal with things here."
Coryn looked over at the dragons behind Rudrick. "You sure...? Looks likes there's a lot of people here..." he said.
"I can manage."
Coryn looks at her, then looks back at the group. He looks a little deflated but doesn't protest, walking past everyone as he leaves the room. Because of his build, it's not particularly graceful and he bumps into several of the other drakes. "Sorry, 'scuse me, pardon me," he says before he finally passes the group and leaves.
Once he's gone, Heliotrope lets out a larger sigh and begins running a claw across the crimson side of her face.
"You alright?" Rudrick said.
"I'm exhausted," Heliotrope responded. "Didn't sleep great last night, and it's probably not helping my teaching any."
"I see," Rudrick said, his voice immediately full of sympathy. "If you don't feel up to this-"
"No, it's fine," Heliotrope said, taking her claw away from her face. "A change is as good a rest. What do you have for me?"
Rudrick glanced over his shoulder towards Garrock, who stepped forward. "We recently came back from a mission," Garrock said. "And some of us have come into contact with the Darkness, including, well..." He motions with his head towards Maug.
Frowning, Heliotrope approaches the collapsed dragon. "Hmmm...." is all she says for a moment as she looks him up and down. After a while, she suddenly prods the sleeping dragon's shoulder with a claw. Nothing happens, not even a small reaction like a flinch. "We have a nest over in the back. Put him over there. I'll look him over again in a moment under some brighter lighting." She motions over towards the back of the room, and Garrock quickly follows her directions, taking the sleeping dragon over. Heliotrope then turns back to the rest of the group. "I'll check everyone else first. Darkness-related maladies aren't my area of expertise, but I have treated a few of them," she said. "Does anyone have any symptoms right now? Anything that feels out of the ordinary at all. Doesn't matter if it seems inconsequential, if your emotions or thoughts have seem a little off, do speak up. It could be nothing, could just be exhaustion or stress, but it's still better to be honest about it now. The Darkness can be subtle some times."
xVampire3go,
rush99999,
Savo,
PalmerEldritch,
Redking0380,
D3AD ST4R,
Lurking Krog,
Guardian Angel Haruki,
Neziul,
Azure Bubbles