New lifestyles. ...any issues? [Mature]

[Omio]

The mountains were glorious enough, but the thing that held more of a focal point was the volcano. The eternally-blazing pits of the volcano also hosted a few cavern with brilliant, brilliant stones and minerals. Though it was dangerous to many, to anyone with a dragon, it was fairly safe.

The sun had traversed the sky, arriving at the opposite side - though far from setting - by the time the travelling group had arrived. The skies had been cold indeed, but kind in winds. There was a small rough patch here and there that was unavoidable, but that was to be expected.

Len had gotten very used to dragonback riding. "...and to be honest, watching everything from the rafters was funny. There they all were, not even expecting me, and then they conversed about perverse matters. I had trouble preventing myself from laughing, but I somehow managed. Then matters got serious, and they all talked about what they were going to do. Of course, they only thing that was a great concern was me; I had rebelled, in their books, and the biggest threat to them. Then the meeting was over, and they left. I was the only one in the room after that. I have to say, that night was nothing short of interesting."

Len had had a rough time at the start, not knowing how the exact process would be, but it wasn't a problem for him now. He had gotten used to being high in the air. He enjoyed it, actually. He could look anywhere with no hitch, and the ride, for the most part, was so smooth that he rarely had to keep a tight grip - though he knew better than to let go of the spike outright. It was his only lifeline.

It was extremely evident what he was talking about; it was the night, about 8 months ago, that Len overheard the details of the second - out of seven so far - snuff-out that was headed his way, the first being almost a year ago now. He spoke about his past so freely, and so sincerely. It was obvious that he had trusted Sarora and Saira completely.

[WolfEnchantress]

Saira, about halfway through the long flight, had laid back, propping up against the spike opposite Len. The view was breathtaking - the volcano towering to their right - a sleeping giant, that, once awoken, would be as angry as a trapped bear.

She was impressed, with both Len and him not falling off and Sarora, who hadn't flown this smoothly since she could remember. There was always a lot of swooping and twisting involved. Thie flight has remained level, aside from the occasional turning and the few spots of turbulence that weren't to jarring.

Saira listened to Len's story thoughtfully, glad he could talk to her about his past so freely.
"So, they're still looking for you?" She asked. "What happens if they catch you? Obviously they're not happy with you, but would they go so far as to hunt you down after all this time?"

She was going to add more, but Sarora cut her off.
We are there, The dragon said, looking back at the two. Saira scrambled to her feet and peeked around Sarora. She couldn't see anything, but if it was a cave, it was bound to be hidden. She spied a sparkling river winding down the side of the volcano, and she assumed it would be along its length somewhere.
Hold on, both of you, Sarora said, flashing teeth in a grin. Saira's eyes widened.
"Sarora, no -" Saira started, but the dragon let out a gleeful roar, and in the next moment was aimed towards the ground, her wings folded close to her body in a hurtle towards the earth. Saira grabbed onto Len's arm and onto the spike he anchored himself to. Any other day she would have urged the dragon faster, possibly more of a seep dive, but at present the only thing on her mind was Len's safety.
The plummet only lasted a few seconds. The earth came up to meet them at a dizzying speed, and though she knew better, there was the sickening feeling like they weren't going to stop and just smash into the earth.

When it seemed like they were going to hit, Sarora flung her wings open and angled themso they leveled off, their speed taking them up the river quickly. The dragon veered a bit to the right before back-flapping to slow herself, and lightly touching down on a plain of ground looked over by the ominous mouth of a cave. She crouched, folding her wings, and looked back at the two.
None harmed, I trust? The dragon asked, and Saira shot the dragon a blazing glare, which was answered with another gleeful growl. If he is going to come with us, he has to get used to it. I cannot fly like that forever, you know.
"Len?" She said questioningly, placing a light hand on his shoulder. "Still with us?"

[Omio]

Lne completely spaced and gapped, and upon the dragon's touchdown, his grip released; and with his falling off-balance at that time as well, that meant only bad news. Not the outright worst, but bad news, if Len didn't get to his senses quickly. He was experiencing a red-out. Known condition among pilots, in our own ways. For whevever you descend, and swoop upward too harshly. His eyes looked spaced, and a bit bloodshot, which definately meant a red-out.

(( Sarora, you brat... F/ ...You know he'll need to adjusat to that kind of thing, considering he already came close to a blackout on your way up... ))

[WolfEnchantress]

Saira grabben Len's arm to keep him upright. She knew exactly what was happening - it had hapened to her a dozen times before, and she knew it wasn't pleasent. Lke a head rush, but a lot worse.

Saira said nothing to Sarora at present - she iddn't have to, the dragon knew exactly what she was thinking.
He will be mad at me, Sarora said matter of factly.
"Of course he will," Saira snapped
You were too.
"You almost killed me. At least he didn't fall off." Sairal et out a sigh of exasperation. "You couldn't have just landed normally?"
I could have.
"Then why didn't you!"
Because I am still deciding if I should trust him with you.
"There's easier ways of going about that," Saira muttered.
She sat Len down, which she found helped with regulating bloodflow again.
"Len. Len, look at me. Say something."

((Sarora: *innocent grin* Saira: *flails about in anger/concern* ))

[Omio]

Len took a while to respond, but once the blood when from his head to the rest of him, he seemingly recovered. "...Huu... ...Weh! Sorry, guys... Guess I'm weak on flights after all..." And he sighed. Great. A weakness of mine... ...Looks like I'll have to find some day to try to relieve it... ...and what better way than to expose myself to it over and over again? "...Yet another problem to add to the ever-increasing list... ...I just hope it doesn't continue to increase... ...I don't want to cause either of you that much trouble..."

[WolfEnchantress]

"Weak at flights?" Saira asked. "You did amaing for your first flight. Far better than me. Granted, I was only seven, but even if it was now, I'd probably have the same results." She grinned. "You know how coordinated I am. I couldn't walk five feet in the woods without tripping."

Yes, you were far better than I had expected, Sarora chimed in. I would hardly consider this a weakness. If anything, it is a strength. The dragon glanced back at the two. No one has to teach you how to ride Dragonback. You could definentally get better, but staying on is the main issue, obviously.

[Omio]

Len shook his head, stern. "Even if that was good for a first, it might prove detrimental later if I don't allow myself to improve. I'd rather be able to take a landing without so much as being phased, let alone falling off. I know I won't reach this immediately, but sooner is better." He had sounded harsh on himself, and in many senses, that was true - but it was because he was harsh on himself that he's so skilled at a wide range of things. It's also going to tax me in entirely new ways... "Nonetheless, off of that topic, we'll have to poke around here a while - a few days, probably - and see if we can find good Keystones. If not, we'll go elsewhere around here, and if so, that's all the better."

(( First one should yield small results, second one plotline, and third one will have keystones. And just a small fraction of lore; Never oppose a Dragoon with a partisan - That is the weapon they train with, and can easily wipe the floor with. Len could launch himself a good forty feet using the partisan and his feet properly. ))

[WolfEnchantress]

Sarora nodded, respecting Len a bit more. He was smart, and knew he wouldn't gain anything from taking things in life easy.
Then we can work on it, if you wish, She said to Len. Saira may help - she can doubtless provide more help being with you than I would alone. After all, I just fly - Saira is the one who's ridden before, she'd know the tricks better than anyone.

Saira nodded.
"We can do that later, though," She said. "Now we should use what daylight we have." She slid from Sarora's back, landing easily, and advising Len the best way to do it without breaking a leg, though she suspected he'd landed hard on his feet before.

I will keep to the air, Sarora said. The forest was one thing - at least they had villages close by and trees to hide in if things got tough. If they were met with any number of the horrible things living on this part of the volcano, however....she didn't want to take that chance. I'll be nearby, and I'll warn you if anything approaches. Likely I can take care of it, but if something slips by my notice it might get to you before I can.

((Kk, can do : ) and I'm glad I actually knew what a partisan was..yay! ))

[Omio]

Len smirked, before straight jumping off, and upon hitting the ground, rolling, and then launching himself forward, flipping, and stopping - skidding a fair distance to do so - on his feet. The landing would've been hard if he hadn't rolled. "Landings aren't a problem. It's just getting up, sometimes. Of course, massive heights make for massive landings." Sarora, let whatever nasties come our way; Saira and I could use the experience, and I have sufficient gear to take out a lot of things. Besides, I'm sure Saira can kinda see first-hand just how dangerous the place can be; the forest wasn't too bad, just had a lot of unexpected visitors of the 'incorrect ecoregion' sort.

[WolfEnchantress]

Saira grinned at Len's landing. Far more elaborate than hers had been. Then again, she couldn't leap into the air eight feet, either, so it made sense.

She looked around at the scenery. It was different than Selkia - the trees more hardy, if not a bit more scraggly. There wasn't much animal evidence, though there was obvious signs of some kind of large predator that had been here at one point by the three broken down trees to their left.
"Where should we start?" She asked idly.

Sarora focused an eye on Len, standing below her.
I think you vastly underestimate exactly how much danger she has seen, Len, Sarora said quietly, guarding her thought from Saira. A hint of regret laced through the thought. Saira stretched, looking around, oblivious to the dragon's next question.
Tell me, just how much of her past has she told you? Sarora didn't think it would be much. Maybe the general overview of how she became the adopted offspring of a dragon, but if there was one thing Saira avoided like the plague it was speaking - or thinking - about her past. She wouldn't even talk about it to Sarora.

[Omio]

Should it not be talked about, it can be assumed to be either disastrous, or inexistant. In this case, I assume a bit of both, in many senses; though in many ways, probably about as harsh as I have been; which would be understandable if she didn't wish to speak to me about it. If she wishes not to speak, that's her fair choice. Len shrugged, keeping the fact he was communicating to Sarora a secret for the time being without any pause or flaw. "Follow the trees; if something had went that way, it's probably looking for something on the interest of shelter; which would also port the ability to find nice stones either en-route, or at the cavern area."

I'm aware that I'm heading straight for something big, but it's best if we tackle a larger problem first and let the small problems come easy afterwards than have all the small problems throw us off of dealing with the larger problem. Don't you think so?

[WolfEnchantress]

Sarora nodded, almost imperceptibly.
Yes, I do think so, She said. Though sometimes, things are better known than hidden. I think in this cast it's a bit of both.

The dragon peered into the trees as though she was simply curious about the area. Though it may still come up. I suppose we will have to wait and see how it goes, then.

Saira began walking along the treeline, rather enjoying herself for the moment. The sun was still up, so it was pretty warm. She rather hoped it would stay like that for at least a while longer. She turned around.
"Len?" She called. "Are you coming?"

[Omio]

Len nodded. "Letting you take iniative so that I know we're all coming along." And he walked to Saira's side, letting her have enough time to turn around for him to walk beside her. Exactly. Better to be on top of things than below them... ...no intention of reproductive references intended. Anyhow, if you feel like flying about, that's fine by me, but staying about's good in my books too.

[WolfEnchantress]

I will be nearby. If either of you need anything, tell me, The dragon said. She raised her head above the trees, peering down the volcano.

The treees grew thicker farther down the slope, and the large stream...or small river ran down the mountain like a churning ribbon. She didn't sense and danger close at hand...yet. That was something that could change quickly, though.

"What is it that we're looking for?" Saira asked. "I mean, I know what it is, but what do they look like?" She wandered farther along the treeline. It was much eeasier to leave Sarora's side when neither was going to close the other out.

[Omio]

Len shrugged. "Something large, obviously. As to what exactly, I'd guess it to be smaller than a dragon, but still scaly. Probably a snake of some sort; and those are easy to deal with, though you have to do it from the inside out. But we also have stones to watch out for. Anything clearer and rounder is better. Preferrably the size of half your thumb, too. If you find a nice bunch, I'll teach you how to make them into Keystones tonight." Understood, Sarora. You will be informed upon need.