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diceofthegods ([personal profile] diceofthegods) wrote in [community profile] childrenofbajablast2025-07-01 07:56 am
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TEST DRIVE MEME #4

Arrival
ALT TEXT

Broken Palace by Jonathan Eng
0:07 / 1:13
▶︎
During 2014 Jonathan Eng composed the soundtrack for interactive narrative experience The Sailor’s Dream, consisting of a mix of instrumental tracks and a seven-part musical story told in folk song-form.

Like all who come through the summoning circle, your arrival is heralded by a dream. Waking up is a dizzying, disorienting thing... and possibly made worse by the fact that you aren't alone.

Right after you appear, so does someone else. If you're lucky*, they'll simply blink into existence by your side. If you're not, there's a chance they spawned below or above you. That's one way to make a memorable first impression. Best untangle yourselves and get things figured out.

If you're extremely unlucky*, instead of another person being brought through the summoning circle, it's a monster. The creature buzzes menacingly and immediately darts at any potential fresh blood it can.

Some welcome this is. If you aren't the fighting type, hopefully someone nearby is. Eventually, one of the local Town guards will slay the monster before it - and you - cause too much trouble or lose too much blood.

SINK OR SWIM
ALT TEXT
Since several people in Town by now are fully-fledged dragons, Dimitri and Hoshiko have teamed up to provide some training drills for those wanting to hone their skills. Although meant for more veteran dragons, newcomers are also welcome to observe and learn what they might be able to do! They may even be paired up with a more established offworlder of the same dragon type as a mentor.

These drills will be around the new(er) formed lake thanks to a previous offworlder's efforts. It provides the perfect place to see what someone's breath weapon can do in different environments as well as help people cool off if they need to. Either way, don't expect your trainers to go easy on you. While not an exhaustive list, the training drills include...

    Underwater Breath Attacks - No matter the situation, a dragon needs to be able to utilize their breath weapon accordingly. Sections of the lake have been sectioned off for different dragon types to practice this. See how poison or acid spreads, learn how to electrocute or freeze enemies, or even boil the water with a bit of concentrated fire. No aquatic animals will be harmed, but they can't guarantee you'll come out unscathed if you happen to fall in.

    Marksmanship - As the resident ranged shooter expert, Hoshiko will be testing people's accuracy with their breath weapons. She'll have a variety of targets around the lake set up to hit the bullseye of if you can. The most difficult though will be the moving target that's strapped to herself. For a large dragon, she moves surprisingly fast and will duck in and out of the water as well to provide an appropriate challenge.

    Conjuration Classes - Taking this opportunity, Ardyn Izunia ([personal profile] fatedfinality) is offering his services in his growing conjuration skills. Does he have permission? Who knows! Probably not! Does he care? Also no! Learn the first level spell/cantrip 'Find Familiar' and summon your own fun little daemon friend! They will not infect anyone, thankfully, but if summoned incorrectly they can harm the summoner or those nearby. All part of the training, he'll say, and let people handle it as they're meant to.

    Staying Vigilant - While parts of the lake are sectioned off, this one is clear about not entering. A painted sign reads: "Beware of kelpies." It might be easy to presume this is also part of the training drills, but it actually isn't. Dimitri is trying to keep offworlders from being drowned. Thankfully, the kelpies aren't actually that much of a threat. Why, you ask? Well...

    "Hey," says one, skirting the edge of the lake shore. "Hey, I need some help here. I'm stuck in the kelp and can't get out." This seems reasonable. It is covered in kelp and waterlogged. Besides, a talking horse surely isn't the strangest thing most people in Town have seen by now. Maybe you can assist just in case. "I promise I won't drown you," it adds, which is a bit suspicious but may still not be enough to deter someone entirely.

    However, another snout and muzzle pokes up from the water nearby its friend. "Wait- We are going to drown them though for real, right? Like, I just want to be sure-"
    "Shut up," the first kelpie hisses. "You always do this, man! This is why we never get to drown anyone!"
    "Sorry. Sorry, it's just- You said we weren't, but I thought we were so I got confused. A-anyway, right! Hello. We are totally normal horses who will not drown you. Please, come closer."

    If you refuse, the kelpies continue to bicker until they're effectively deterred and sink back down into the depths before (weakly) attempting to drown someone else again later.

Although this is supposed to be super serious training time, no one is stopping you from having a bit of fun too. The climbing structures are fun to jump off into the water. Those ropes dangling over the edge from thick tree branches make a great swing to catapult you far into the lake. Sometimes, some play is necessary even in the midst of 'work.'


THIS HEAT IS INTENTS
ALT TEXT

It's Raining Somewhere Else by Toby Fox
2:01 / 2:54
▶︎
Robert F. "Toby" Fox is an American video game developer and composer. He is best known for developing the role-playing video game Undertale.

During the day, the heat becomes almost intolerable at its peaks. While some dragonbonded were lucky to get an ice type, others may not be. Without more modern amenities, people of Town and Offworlders both are left to do what they can to combat the rising temperatures. It is recommended people open their windows at night to let the cool air in but then close it again as the sun starts to climb.

After a couple of days of sweltering suffering in the midst of a heatwave, Charlie offers camping equipment for people who may want to escape the warmth as best they can. People can camp by rivers or lakes to keep cool, fish for food, and set up bonfires at night. Slayd might be seen at your campsite, even, with a fun tune to keep spirits up.

Although not an exhaustive list, some of the things offworlders can do while camping are...

    ⁂ Chase or catch lightning bugs. They are in abundance during the early nighttime and can provide a bit of fun.
    ⁂ Cook over the campfire. S'Mores, meat, whatever! Just be careful of attracting predators if you do this. Dispose of all your food properly lest you invite raccoons, bears, or more to your campsite.
    ⁂ Foraging. Similarly, finding food out in nature is a fun activity. Although the Fae might try to trick you with dancing lights, they're easy enough to dissuade.
    ⁂ Stargazing. The constellations here are different, but it might be worth mapping them out or learning their stories.
    ( NSFW - Nudity ) Skinny Dipping. A classic camping activity once the sun sets is stripping off your clothes and going for a swim. The water is cool, no one can see, and it's kind of freeing!
    ⁂ ... and lots more! Have fun out there, offworlders, and try not to do too much damage.
While some may also worry about the previous giant mosquitos or other abnormally large bugs, the tents provided by Charlie have built-in protections against them! They are equipped with enhanced citronella oil that smells nice but keeps insects away. However, it also has an intense calming effect on those with sensitive noses... like dragons and dragonbonded! Even the most tense or uptight of individuals will feel relaxed and happy thanks to this scent.

The change in attitude is only temporary though and will diminish over time once someone is away from the tent for a few hours. Once they return to it though, the cycle will begin again and some may catch on to this pattern. But what's the harm, really? Enjoy the cool breeze, have a good sleep, and hopefully sweet dreams. You might even be more amicable to sharing your tent space thanks to your improved mood but that is up to you!
Rocky Talky
One of the things that was given to you in your welcome pack from Charlie was a summoning-stone. Although it looks like, well, an ordinary stone- It's actually magic! You can look through it and see someone else's face too if you're both viewing your stones at the same time. It can also record your speech and deliver that to someone else in a snap.

One of the other features is that you can scrawl on it. It will turn your writing into legible text that you can send others to read on their stones. Of course, you need to attune yourself to your stone first. To that end, it prompts you to set up a Rockstar Profile:

COMMENT CODE TEMPLATE
Notes
⁂ Hello and welcome to Children of Bahamut! If you have any questions, suggestions, or feedback feel free to comment here!

⁂ We have a top-level directory for ease of finding new players to tag! After some feedback, we ask that only new players link their top-levels though current players are allowed to top-level and enjoy the TDM if they so wish as well!
    (Example header: character name | canon | new/current player )
⁂ For the Arrival prompt, feel free to roll a d20 to see how lucky or unlucky you are.

⁂ Similarly, for the marksmanship prompt, players will need to roll a 15 or higher to successfully hit Hoshiko's moving target.

⁂ You can customize the the Rockstar Profile however you wish! So long as its readable, have fun. The profile image appears best when a 250 by 250 square image. Anything too tall might stretch it strangely or cause issues. If you need to edit or crop a picture to suit, we recommend using Pixlr as a free option for up to three images! We're not sponsored or anything, it's just neat and convenient.

Full Navigation
hasitsthorns: are rhymes and nuts (The only thing I bust)

❥ rosie ❥ original ❥ current player

[personal profile] hasitsthorns 2025-07-01 11:03 pm (UTC)(link)
❥ rockstar profile / network.
Rockstar Profile
Rosie | 26

Hi! My name's Rosie. I run the All The Way Inn here in Town.

You're welcome to stop on in to try and beat the heat. To that end though, any dragonbonded with ice breath get a discount on a meal and drink on the house if they can help with keeping things cool around here.

I'm more than happy to pay in other ways too! Just let me know. I'll do just about anything to keep my customers and goods from melting.



❥ intents music session.
While Slayd is providing musical encouragement, Rosie is working on her own music at her tent. Someone might be drawn by the sound of a string instrument expecting the woodsy local but find her instead. She doesn't mind any disappointment, but will invite them to still stay and listen if they want.

"Sorry, it's not as fun as other entertainment. Mostly just work-shopping some tunes to see how they fit with certain lyrics right now... I'm a little rusty on original work, but trying to get back into it." If not just for the fun of it, then to keep the appeal of live entertainment at her inn. For as busy as it has kept her, she did want to run it as best as she could.

❥ pale moonlight.
(cw: nsfw/nudity)

Rosie is perhaps noticeably absent from the water-based training drills. At least, from participating in them. While she's happy to cheerlead and encourage people to do their best, she seems content to stay away from the water's edge despite the near intolerable heat.

A spell in a tent with that enhanced relaxing oil though and she's a bit less anxious about the water. Still nervous, yes, but not deathly afraid like before. Yet, she still doesn't want to risk the vulnerability that comes with explaining why she was avoiding the water earlier; instead, she finds a quiet, discreet place to disrobe and tentatively toe into the cool water during the dark of night.

She doesn't go further than just about chest height and keeps her feet firmly planted on the soft, damp earth below. Being moored this way keeps her from being too afraid to enjoy finally, finally escaping the heat from before. She braves bending forward to wet her hair and throw it back with a sigh.

But she at least isn't so distracted that she misses the crack of a twig or rustling of leaves nearby. With a small squeak, she crouch down into the water and asks: "Who's there?"

❥ wildcard / plot with me.
(( hello hi, it's chai! if you have any other ideas or wanna' hash things out with me, feel free to find me @ tentamenace on plurk/discord or PM this journal! ))
heckof: (would I lie?)

[personal profile] heckof 2025-07-01 11:07 pm (UTC)(link)
Does the Rockstar profile require characters to input their information in writing? For anything they do write over the network, is there a particular way the magic auto-translate should handle IC spelling mistakes--like, being thrown off/ automatically fixing them/somehow corresponding to similar mistakes in each language/a secret fourth option?

Hella here got a late start on her education and her literacy level is Doing Her Best, so it's something that might come up at some point even if writing is never strictly necessary.
heckof: (BWAAAAH)

Hella | Path to Nowhere | new player

[personal profile] heckof 2025-07-02 02:10 am (UTC)(link)
- extremely unlucky -

[Hella is used to sleeping outdoors, even in the wilderness now. She's also used to waking up on the ground after rolling and wiggling and thrashing her way out of her sleeping bag overnight--she's always been able to occupy an inordinate amount of bed for someone her size. But the unfamiliar feeling that wakes her is a soft sort of ticklish, slightly itchy feeling on her skin which, blinking groggily, she slowly realizes is grass.

Grass? Fucking grass? In Whitesands? Grass is something you get in... like... parks and stuff in Eastside, and around the farming satellite towns. And there's that weird springy fake grass in the "outdoor" area at the MBCC. But when Hella went to bed last night she was in a bombed-out desert wasteland stretching for hundreds of miles in every direction.

The second thing to get her attention is the buzzing, which finally causes her to look up.

Now, this kind of thing isn't all that outlandish or terrifying by her world's standards. And she is, under the right circumstances, perfectly capable of defending herself against even more grotesque monsters. However, just now Hella is unarmed, alone, has no idea what's going on, and until about two seconds ago was still at least half asleep. So it shouldn't count against her street cred that, instinctively, she scrambles to her feet and bolts away from the big fuckass bug demon, screaming at the top of her lungs.]


Help! Beautiful girl in danger! SOMEBODY! HEEEEEEEEEELP!!


- beware of kelpies -

[Hella does not know what a kelpie is. She does, however, know a hustle when she sees one, even when it's not objectively terrible. And in Syndicate, there are two ways to respond to a hustle: apply violence, or hustle back.

Hm...

After the kelpies disappear, she searches her surroundings for something hard and heavy. She finds a decent-sized fallen branch, drags it to the edge of the water, and crouches down with the branch hidden behind her back.]


Oh my gosh, are you still there, horsies? It sounded like you were talking, but I couldn't make out what you were saying! Do you need help? Ohhh, if only I knew how to swim!


- it's over for you bitches. hella is now Posting -

[I she we got too lazy to do this in paragraph format]

Rockstar Profile
Hella | 16-ish
  • Fearless adventurer
  • Folk hero
  • Once feared as Rat Queen of Syndicate (now reformed! has committed no serious crimes for years!!)
  • Charismatic and inspiring beauty with throngs of adoring fans
  • Still young and has plenty of time to get taller
  • Accepting cash gifts at all times



Edited 2025-07-02 02:29 (UTC)
aisandfyr: (Halatali)

beware of kelpies

[personal profile] aisandfyr 2025-07-02 02:58 am (UTC)(link)
[ Aisthota, of course, has a special sixth sense for hearing the word "help." You'd think this would already be covered by normal hearing, but Aisthota suffers from a particularly advanced case of heroism. You might also think that that would mean she'd be showing up for the first prompt instead, but, you see, this is funnier.

And so, before the kelpies can resurface, an inhumanly tall woman approaches instead. ]


Hey, is something wrong? Did someone fall in?
hasitsthorns: I don't know. Ask your dad. (Do you have the fastest tongue?)

unlucky.

[personal profile] hasitsthorns 2025-07-02 03:44 am (UTC)(link)
[ While out foraging for seasonal fruits, Rosie happens to hear the shriek of someone not too far from the summoning circle. Ah, looks like another newcomer ending up face-to-face with some kind of monster... Last time, it was flaming skulls. This time, it's- ] Oh, ew.

[ Thankfully, she's gotten a bit more comfortable with shifting to more draconic when she needs to. That includes now as she suddenly whips a long, green tail out from beneath her dress to smack that bug harshly away. ] Buzz off, already! [ The pun was intended, but she also means it as she growls and flexes her claws.

Thankfully, the creature decides this isn't worth the challenge and blitzes away. Rosie turns to the other girl with constricted pupils and a huff of green smoke from her nostrils. Hints of emerald scales line parts of her face and neck but not completely.
]

There, [ she sighs, flipping blond hair back over her shoulder. ] Shouldn't bother you anymore!
heckof: (BWAAAAH)

you made me use this icon twice in a row. the others weren't funny enough

[personal profile] heckof 2025-07-02 03:55 am (UTC)(link)
[Shit. Braining an apparently drowning horse in front of somebody who doesn't know the context is the kind of thing that leads to Problems, but if she explains what she's doing out loud even these guys might be smart enough not to fall for it.

Hella half-turns to look at the newcomer, intending to try to convey a lot of very specific information through vague and frantic gestu
GIANT WOMAN CHIEF HOLY FUCK]

Uhhh--

[Hella is not someone who gets tongue-tied. Like her mother before her, she gets plenty of bitches. But the 7'+ jumpscare while her mind is somewhere completely different does force at least a brief mental reboot on her.

No seriously Ninety-Nine is like 5'11" and Hella can basically rest in her open palm, there's no ROOM for roegadyn in Hella's worldview. She's gonna get a crick in her fucking neck.

wasn't she doing something a second ago]


Uh, there's, a horse! Under the wat... I mean, let me handle it! I can explain later! What I'm doing makes perfect sense, I promise!
heckof: (you wouldn't hit a little birthday girl?)

[personal profile] heckof 2025-07-02 04:23 am (UTC)(link)
[Hella dives to the ground when she sees something moving like a giant whip overhead, so she gets the benefit(?) of seeing the rest of this spectacle from below. Well. ...This, too, is not actually too much of a shock. Intimidating, yes, but if there's any kind of shared subculture among Sinners, it includes the courtesy not to freak out about each other's physical corruption or mutations.

Yeah, she doesn't actually know anything about what just happened, she's just laboring under a particularly expedient misconception. Anyway, nobody who leaps into battle pun-first is gonna turn around and eat her, either. She climbs to her feet, dusting herself off.]


Th-thanks... phew. What the hell was that thing? Do you just get those around here?
moonhater: (no)

pale moonlight

[personal profile] moonhater 2025-07-02 05:01 am (UTC)(link)
"Ah, I'm nobody suspicious."

Oanna raises an open hand, as if to indicate that she isn't holding any weapons. Her other arm ends just past the elbow, so she's probably not hiding a dagger there, either. Down to just the innermost layer of her robes, she was planning to drop that too, but probably better to make sure there's no bad blood before getting naked.

"I just wanted to escape the heat for a bit. I can come back later if it's a bad time."
hasitsthorns: You know it, baby (CHICKEN FINGIES!)

[personal profile] hasitsthorns 2025-07-02 05:51 am (UTC)(link)
[ All things considered, it isn't the worst view someone could have of Rosie as she works. Although she doesn't like to be aggressive unless necessary, this did feel warranted. Demora also did a good job of making sure they never went too far to respect both their more pacifist desires.

Rosie does extend a hand to help the other lady up. Her tail also curls around her lightly for extra support and to pat off any lingering dust. Having an extra prehensile appendage can be pretty nice sometimes.
] Dire mosquito? Or maybe just giant...

Either way, yeah. Usually you'd only find them deep in the forest but they're probably out because of the humidity. [ Said casually, as someone used to dungeons and dragons fuckery would be. ]

My name's Rosie though, by the way! Seems like you just dropped in?
hasitsthorns: You know it, baby (CHICKEN FINGIES!)

[personal profile] hasitsthorns 2025-07-02 06:02 am (UTC)(link)
"-oh!" she answers, relieved. It could have been worse, she thinks, than a newcomer. "No, that's fine," she continues, raising back up a bit. "Plenty of lake to go around."

Between two women, she doesn't mind showing off a bit more skin than she might otherwise too. Not like most people could see anything but her shillouette in the dark anyway.

"Just wanted to make sure it wasn't, like, a weird monster or anything. Trying to beat the heat too is totally good with me. Can't blame anyone for that."
moonhater: (All within the Dao)

[personal profile] moonhater 2025-07-02 09:37 pm (UTC)(link)
Her vision is very good, but she's not so crass as to stare.

Oanna nods, finishes undressing, and wades out into the water until it's up to her neck. Heavens, that's lovely.

"You aren't the first person I've asked this question today, but do you have any idea what the hell this is all about?"
moonhater: (Why did you kill that guy)

Oanna | OC | New player

[personal profile] moonhater 2025-07-02 09:55 pm (UTC)(link)
-1- Heaven

[Oanna manifests about a hundred yards above the ground. Not... okay, on the list of weird things that have happened to her, it's at least near the top of the list.

Well, there's a lot to ponder here. Why her? Why this high up? How long is it going to take for her to get back to her bloody vengeance?

Oh hey, there's someone down there.]


Incoming.

[Said in a matter-of-fact tone as she plummets groundwards. However, rather than crashing into the hapless soul underfoot, she lands with the lightness of a feather, the tip of her foot lightly touching their head before drifting off to the side and landing gently on her feet. One of the perks of her training.]

Do you know what's going on here? If you do, I have a lot of questions.


-2- Fire

[It's hot. For some reason, her spirit flow isn't protecting her from the elements as much as it used to. It's like her core has been weakened by the transition to this world. Well, during the day, nothing for it but to distract herself with work. It's a classic pastime of most Artists: Gathering herbs.

The trouble is, none of the herbs she recognizes are anywhere to be found. The plants are as alien as everything else about this place. So, what started as an attempt to be genuinely productive eventually becomes just a walk in the forest. Eventually, even that becomes sitting cross-legged on the grass, eyes closed, coaxing spiritual energy out of the atmosphere and into her body... Even cultivating here feels off. The air is all wrong.

She cracks an eye open at the first sounds of anyone passing by.]


How's your knowledge of medicinal plants? I've come down with a case of scales.


-3- Metal

Rockstar Profile
Cai Oanna | 26
When we have reached the end of every road,
When we have seen the view from every mountain peak,
When it snows in summer,
When heaven and earth become one,
Not until then will I leave your side.
snapp_crackle: (:))

unlucky

[personal profile] snapp_crackle 2025-07-03 12:19 am (UTC)(link)
[ Look. Despite all the bullshit that comes out of his mouth, Popp would leap into action to save just about anyone calling for help. Hearing "beautiful girl" specifically does add just a little more oomph to his reaction time by virtue of overriding a bunch of less important brain functions, though. He is who he is! ]

Kafrizz!

[ A loud voice rings out from the sky, followed by a firey blast that slams into the bug and leaves it a crispy, twitching heap on the ground. ]

Nothing to it, you're perfectly safe now!

[ One of Popp's brain functions that was overlooked in the rapid flight over towards ~yon imperiled maiden~ was checking to make sure he was in friendly normal human form to make a good first impression. The voice is of a brash young man, but the body snaking down to the ground is a loooong green dragon. ]
Edited (subject line my nemesis) 2025-07-03 00:20 (UTC)
moonhater: (I pretend not to see it)

Cai Oanna | OC

[personal profile] moonhater 2025-07-03 12:25 am (UTC)(link)
snapp_crackle: (What)

1

[personal profile] snapp_crackle 2025-07-03 12:42 am (UTC)(link)
[ Finally. This is it. Your actions and what you put out into the world will prove your salvation or your undoing, and Popp has crashed into or with a lot of people with various types of transportation magic. He shrieks and braces to catch a high-speed impact... and when that turns out to be far, far lighter than anticipated, falls over backwards from overbalancing. ]

Yeah, sort of - but what kind of magic was that?!

[ He's pulled himself up to a sitting position and is now pointing at her indignantly. ]
moonhater: (Apathy)

[personal profile] moonhater 2025-07-03 12:46 am (UTC)(link)
Feather step. Have you never seen an Artist before? It's a pretty common technique.

[ Said a little less incredulously than she would otherwise, since this does seem to be another world. The moon doesn't have a spirit realm, so maybe something similar is going on here. ]
snapp_crackle: (WHAAAAT)

[personal profile] snapp_crackle 2025-07-03 01:00 am (UTC)(link)
Like a martial artist? I wouldn't call that basic where I come from! Basic martial arts would be, like... a punch or a kick!

[ No matter how many otherworldy techniques Popp's seen, a new one never fails to leave an impact. He's scrutinizing her a little more, now that he knows that she might sort of have the same class of fighting style as someone he hasn't seen in a long time. ]
moonhater: (Do you expect me to buy this)

[personal profile] moonhater 2025-07-03 01:35 am (UTC)(link)
[ The sword at her hip does at least suggest something a little more armed than that. ]

There's martial arts, and then there's the Art. More like...

[ Oanna extends her hand, channeling a white aura through it, then extends a soft burst of kinetic force that hits Popp like... well, a gentle breeze, she's not being a jerk about it.

After the attack, she looks at her hand a bit suspiciously. ]


Strange... I think something's interfering with my Core.
avanture_time: (The real funny part)

Fire

[personal profile] avanture_time 2025-07-03 01:50 am (UTC)(link)
[ Avan was trying to be quiet as he did his own herb-gathering so as not to disturb the meditating lady, so he freezes awkwardly in place when he's addressed. ]

Oh! Mr. Charlie has books about the local flora you can borrow! I read them all when I first arrived.

[ He reaches into his basket and pulls out a plant that he offers to Oanna. ]

Here, this one can be made into a salve that'll help with the itching.
fatedfinality: ɪᴛ's ᴀʙᴏᴜᴛ ᴘᴏᴡᴇʀ. (Iᴛ's ɴᴏᴛ ᴀʙᴏᴜᴛ ᴘʟᴇᴀsᴜʀᴇ)

Ardyn Izunia ↝ FFXV ↝ Current Player

[personal profile] fatedfinality 2025-07-03 02:27 am (UTC)(link)
↝ conjuration classes.
While Dimitri may try to prevent him from poaching people from training drills for his classes, his success is middling at best. Ardyn just keeps coming back around eventually like an unfortunate invasive weed. The man eventually gives up and seems to focus instead on his actual pupils but the redhead is happy to rope anyone he can into his impromptu conjuration practice.

"No rune lines necessary," he explains, with a dismissive roll of his wrist. "All you need to do is focus and have the confidence to exert your will over what you summon." Otherwise, they might be in for a fight. Their lack of security in their ability though isn't Ardyn's problem. Nor will he be of much assistance if that does happen to be the case.

He demonstrates the 'proper' technique though by extending his hand and curling his fingers up like he's physically pulling something up from the earth. A glob of inky black substance starts to manifest before coming together in the shape of a gooey, panting canine-like creature. It regards Ardyn with a headtilt before coming to his side as the man whistles sharply. It gets a pet on the head for its following of the command and wags its tail in response. Despite being a sludge abomination, it is kind of cute.

"Now, your turn."


↝ staying vigilant.
"Totally normal horses, you say?" Ardyn questions, crouching by the lake shore to be more 'eye level' with the completely inept kelpies. They've got the spirit though. He can respect that.

"Yeah, absolutely," one answers.
"What do horses eat then?" Ardyn asks.
"Uh..."

Rather than be frightened by the creatures wanting to pull him into the water and end his life, Ardyn is now coaching them in how to be more convincing. Horses eat grass! They sleep in barns or stables! They'd also be a lot more panicked about drowning, like a person they're dragging down would- You know, the important things. The kelpies are listening intently and nodding along injecting with 'yeah, makes sense' or 'totally, man,' here or there.

Someone might want to... stop? Him? Before he gets people killed?


↝ beating the heat.
( █ cw for: he's gross )

Ardyn happens to be one of the lucky dragonbonded that has ice as his breath weapon. As a result, he rests in his fully draconic form and stretches out with a loud yawn at his own campsite. Anyone that approaches will notice it is several degrees cooler around his designated area. However, they'll also be promptly nudged back into the heat by a large dragon paw.

"Ah, ah," he says, a low rumble of a noise. "Using this ability really takes it out of me. I can't just do it for anyone. What are you offering me in return, hm?" He's waiting as he watches the other person sweat.

Or, if you're someone he just happens to be fond about, he won't immediately send you away. Instead, Ardyn will pull the person close and lick them like a disgusting heathen. "Hm," he growls, "salty." About what he expected, of course, but still somehow worth commentating on. He gives another snuffle before licking them again. You know, just to be sure.


↝ wildcard / plot with me.
(( hello hi once again it's chai! if you aren't sure if Ardyn is fond of your character, you can hmu to hash things out. otherwise, if you have any other ideas or wanna plot something out find me @ tentamenace on plurk/discord or PM this journal! ))
hasitsthorns: I don't know. Ask your dad. (Do you have the fastest tongue?)

[personal profile] hasitsthorns 2025-07-03 02:35 am (UTC)(link)
Well, Rosie wouldn't mind a little staring... She just never expects it from other women! That's probably for the best though since it means she's able to be more sincere than if she were trying for someone's attention.

The question draws a laugh from her though as she wades through the water. "What part, exactly? Being in a new world, having a dragon soul hitchhiking onto yours, or how stupidly hot it is? Lots of possibilities to discuss."
errant_knight: (My heart and hands collide)

Beating the heat

[personal profile] errant_knight 2025-07-03 02:53 am (UTC)(link)
"Ugh. Why are you like this?" Ravus grumbles as he is hauled up against Ardyn's snout to be licked like some sort of human popsicle.

If it bothered him so much, he could very well just push away. It's not as if he isn't unnaturally strong or without a dragon form of his own. But he can't deny the temptation of dragon-powered air conditioning isn't strong in this heat. Or that he... Actually doesn't mind being licked that much. It's only a little gross. Which is a mortifying thought that he keeps to himself as he half-heartedly pushes at Ardyn's muzzle. Which may stray into a pet or two if he continues to be licked.

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