[Matreats]

mark

> Dean and Jasper decide to take a trip to the beach, and Relient accompanies them to protect his sister from Dean's impulsive behavior (much to their annoyance)
> Jade taking care of his garden and plants, missing Raavah and wondering where his kids went
> Aeolus and Cynthia training? (Finding out his ability to fly)
> Aster and Faylen as young visclings out in the forest with Tanza and Ren - (When Aster realizes his jealousy of Faylen being the "first born" to inherit Ren's power
>

[bakuraas.]

Viscets: Atlan + Eleya
Main Story: 1,003 words

This year, something I never thought would happen hit me faster than a bullet train. I've always been a bit isolationist when not at work, but I really do need to be social when I'm working. You can't have someone teaching others how to swim and have them be nervous and shy. That's the kind of attitude expected of the people taking the classes. Someone recently who joined my classes this summer however, he made me want to be alone less after lessons. His smile and the way he looked at me during lessons, for some reason it caught my heart and put it in a headlock. I haven't been able to free it from that grasp for-heck- months now. Summer changed me, and as the seasons change from summer to autumn and then to the last months of the year in winter, it's hard not to look back at that viscet who changed me. I thought I would never feel love in my water-logged heart, but now in the cold days of winter, with my boyfriend laying at my side, comfy and sleeping away under the blanket we share near the fireplace, I can't help but look back at that summer and partially wonder why it felt so new to me.

It was very early summer, some kids hadn't even left their education yet, but I was starting swimming lessons by the beach specifically for adults. There were plenty of programs around for children, but none for adults who never got the chance to learn. When Eleya first joined my classes, I thought there was some kind of mistake. No way was this viscet looking to learn how to swim. For one ,they looked as if they were made of scales, almost like a flowering fish. And for two, I recognized him as the viscet who saved someone at the first sound of a cry of help. They seemed to swim like a merman at the time, so what was the prank here? Who was setting up the joke and letting this excellent swimmer join my class. Of course, I had to say it to him. I wasn't crude to him, of course, just a simple phrase of "Um, Excuse me sir, but are you in the right place? This is a Swimming Class." He almost seemed embarrassed when I asked, and I assured him that if he wished to join us he could. I still couldn't believe that he couldn't swim however. Oh, but trust me, after the first time we got into the water, I was proven wrong.

He seemed to be panicked in the water, almost as if he felt the water was trying to assassinate him or something. At first, I thought he was just joking around and acting a fool, so I told him the same motivation I told everyone else in the class, but the joking stopped when his head fell under the water and didn't bob back up. I was shocked, no- I was scared for a good bit until I dived dosn and pulled him back up to the surface. It was...a very strange time to think the thoughts that I did, focusing on how he looked, but I couldn't help it. His bright seagreen eyes contrasted by dark black and then reaching back into the pink and white of his face, the pink parted by slight brightness except for his cute nose. Soft, Pink, almost looking like a candy that glimmered in the sun. If I hadn't known any better, in that moment, he looked at me the same way. But I was odd, I was a creature with a mane of mist that belonged in the ocean, there was no way that he could look to my face of swirls and darkness and see someone handsome. Later I would find out that it wasn't as disgusting to him as it was to me. However, before that, I needed to teach him to swim so he wouldn't die on me.

The lessons that everyone had, it didn't seem to work for Eleya. He'd constantly say he didn't understand when everyone else did. I felt so bad for him and, as much as I wanted to return home after work like everyone else would, I couldn't help but need to help Eleya more. Perhaps it was my heart wanting to make sure he could understand and that he could be able to swim like everyone else one day, or perhaps it was my mind thinking that if he did so her perhaps might get additional funds in his payment for the lessons. In reality however, he didn't want money, not from Eleya. He wanted just to see Eleya smile, and to see them succeed. For him to be able to look at the ocean and instead of being afraid, being excited for the adventure ahead. He could be able to sing to the heavens, cry to the world, and find his voice in the ocean just as much as he could find his voice anywhere else. Out of all things, I had never expected him to find a voice in my heart, and a voice so intense. At first, we just were at the beach late at night. We'd be talking about how we were able to be alone and so if Eleya struggled, nobody would laugh because nobody would be there to see besides me, and I would never judge him for struggling. One day, or, one night, He told me that he wanted to meet up with me after everyone's lessons. He invited me to a seafood bar on the dock, and he had a look in his eyes that I recognized. Fear, worry. He was afraid of me rejecting his offer. I of course couldn't reject him, my heart just wouldn't allow it, so I agreed. That was our first date, and the first domino of the chain reaction of events that changed my life forever, all under the summer sky.

[magpiemochi.]

real quick; but I just want to say the minimum art limit is 2 art pieces instead of 3. that was my mistake in the communication and milo will edit that as soon as he can since he's at work at the moment!

[Vluwu]

smol mark

[✦ nemuri]

x
indentaisuke wasn't stupid. he knew something was wrong the moment he regained consciousness, and even though he knew that it probably wasn't cipher's fault that the entire situation had happened, he couldn't but feel bitter anyways. cipher was very smart, almost too smart for his own good, and he was wholly responsible for the well-being of the ruler of nakutsune. the moment that the viscet with ram horns and implemented emotions and the ability to learn within aisuke's code, the other coders responsible for the a.i. had left. obviously, the hacker wasn't pleased, but one of the things that aisuke had quickly learned was that in nakutsune, money could buy anything and everything. with the promise of a hefty ten grand per month, cipher had eventually accepted the fact that he couldn't leave the a.i. alone.

indentforcing himself into an upright position with some difficulty, aisuke flinched as a stab of pain traveled along his spine. if he were to explain the feeling to the hacker, cipher would only scoff and explain how the a.i. couldn't actually feel pain, because he didn't actually exist in the real world. however, aisuke knew how pain was described, and what he was currently experiencing seemed pretty close to those descriptions. tremors shook through his body, and he opened his mouth to release a soundless shriek into the empty abyss that aisuke seemed to be floating in. the realm of code was very lonely, and the ruler of nakutsune only knew of cipher's companionship, which didn't really mean much, since cipher only stuck around long enough to perform system maintenance checks and updates.

indentthen, as quickly as the pain had appeared, it had vanished. aisuke let out a mute sigh of relief, but when he glanced at his paws, his body stiffened in shock. parts of his appendages were starting to pixelate and disappear, which had never happened before. for a moment, the ruler of nakutsune wondered if the hacker had gotten bored and had decided to erase parts of the code that made him up on a whim, but he quickly shoved the thought away. cipher had poured in too much time into caring for aisuke to even consider deleting him, and aisuke was fairly certain that whatever sort of contractors cipher might have had would never be able to offer more money than the ruler himself did. even if ten grand wasn't enough to upkeeping his maintenance, cipher would only need to have a small chat with him, and the deed would be done.

indentfor this reason, aisuke considered himself to be a rather easy-going viscet whose deals benefited both himself and his assistants, but when the tip of his tail had completely vanished, he couldn't help but feel a strong prick of annoyance towards the brilliant hacker. why was cipher taking so long? given the strong firewalls and layers of code that protected aisuke, it should've been almost impossible for anyone to penetrate the defenses that cipher had set up, but now that someone had dared to test the systems, the ruler was very uneasy. many files of sensitive and private information were also kept in the file that aisuke resided in, and if the hacker - whoever they were - was able to begin deleting away at the ruler, they would be able to retrieve the top-secret information and leak out all of nakutsune's secrets. such a plot to bring down nakutsune wouldn't be surprising, but something like that has never happened while cipher was caring for aisuke.

indenteventually, he had had enough of waiting around and doing nothing. by now, several strands of his hair had been deleted, along with the tips of his ears, half his tail, and parts of his paws, and aisuke would be damned if he just sat around and let the hacker did as they pleased. even if the attacker was from an outside source and codes within the realm of code technically couldn't do anything to fight back, aisuke reasoned that he should be at least able to ward off the attacker from the information, and stall the time a little, at least until cipher was able to fight back. the a.i. made his way towards the vault, and was about to reinforce the code surrounding the vault when he noticed a small, green bug eating away at the lock on the vault. fear and anxiety gripped aisuke's insides as he recognized what the bug was, and with an enraged screech, he swatted the insect away. of course, the bug wasn't affected, as it only got back onto its feet once again before latching onto the lock to continue what it had been doing before. the bug was a virus, and even though aisuke would be able to prevent the bug from making much progress at first, the virus would undoubtedly win without cipher's help.

indent"where the hell is cipher when i need him most, damn it? i hope he knows that i can't possibly hope to fend off this hacker by myself... this is unlike anything i've ever experienced before, even before cipher assumed the position of caring for me," aisuke muttered to himself angrily, as he plucked the bug off the lock with his undamaged paw. he dropped the virus onto the ground and crushed it with with his hind paws. stepping on the virus brought a new wave of pain onto aisuke, and when he lifted his paw off the bug, its shell was slightly cracked. green sparks flew between the bug's antennae, and it simply launched itself towards the lock again, as though it hadn't just been stepped on by an a.i, who was several hundred times larger.

indentcursing softly to himself, the ruler of nakutsune bared his teeth angrily at the virus, before attempting to tear it away from the lock once again. no matter what the virtual viscet did, nothing would stop the bug from eating away at the lock that protected all of the kingdom's secrets. at the same time, his body was quickly fading away as well; almost all his files had been deleted, and once aisuke was removed from the realm, it would be difficult for even someone like cipher to bring him back. slumping against what he had thought was the impenetrable iron fortress, aisuke closed his eyes wearily. his entire right arm had been deleted, along with an eye, a hind leg, and sections of his tail. if any ordinary viscet were in the ruler's place, they would have long since died from bleeding out, but because aisuke was merely a program, he would remain until his entire code was deleted.

indentas the ruler of nakutsune coughed loudly, he gasped at the sharp jolt of pain that ran through his chest. when he opened his eyes and looked down, there was an empty, gaping hole where his virtual heart would've been. panic flooded through his veins uncontrollably, but because he wasn't able to do anything, he merely closed his eyes again. his mind was teetering on the edge of consciousness, and as much as aisuke would've liked to keep his eyes open and begin attacking the virus again, he was too weak to fight off the attacks from the assailant. 'i still can't believe that cipher is willing to sacrifice the entire kingdom in exchange for some extra money, or perhaps a few extra minutes of sleep.'

indentas aisuke's consciousness had been about to fade away for good, a pair of paws grabbed him by his shoulders and shook him roughly. he opened his eyes slightly and tried to flinch away from the other viscet, and when he caught sight of a pair of familiar horse-like ears, his eyes widened in surprise. the other viscet, whose fur was slightly translucent, let out a small laugh before attempting to pull aisuke back onto his remaining paws. "hey now, aisuke, now's not the time to be falling asleep! wake up, we've got a long day ahead of us! besides, if you lose consciousness now, you're basically admitting defeat to whoever it is that's trying to steal nakutsune's secrets and delete you, and you'd hate that, right?"

indent"y-yin... why are you here? i know that etheric revenants can come and go as they please, but... why have you decided... to come here, of all times?" aisuke rasped out, shaking slightly as his remaining paws planted themselves firmly into the ground, refusing to budge. yin let out a small sigh of exasperation, before shaking his head at the ruler of nakutsune. the virtual viscet couldn't help but feel confused at the ghost's sudden appearance; why was he here instead of cipher?

indent"you see, little aisuke, cipher had woken up to quite the fright when he realized that you were under attack. he's still dealing with the issue, and when i decided to drop by, he kept lamenting about how he wished that you would just go into his phone or something. is that even possible for you? in any case, he's dealt with most of the virus that was going to steal away the secrets of nakutsune, but then there's still the concern for your safety." taking a pause to regain his breath, the translucent viscet scrunched his together, as though he was deep in thought. the ghost had crossed his arms as well, and as aisuke glanced up at yin, he could see small hints of worry within the other viscet's pale eyes. "i believe he's still fighting the other hacker, and i don't know how it's going to turn out. after he's done, he should have all the time he needs to re-code you, but whatever you do, aisuke, do not fall asleep."

indentthe ruler of nakutsune nodded his head slowly, still clearly in a daze. he had trouble absorbing some of the information that the etheric revenant had passed on to him, but most of it had made sense. it was easy to tell that cipher was doing his best to fix the issue, and that aisuke had to do anything he could to assist the horned viscet's efforts. "i don't really understand everything you've just said, but i got to basic gist of it. i... i'll do my best." letting out a small cough again, he lowered his head slightly. when aisuke raised his head again, his orange eyes were burning with determination. after all, if cipher hadn't given up yet, then there was no reason for the ruler to concede defeat to the attacker.

indentgrinning softly, yin flicked the tip of his tail. aisuke smiled back at the etheric revenant, but his smile faded away slightly upon noticing the ominous look that yin's smile did not match. "that's the spirit! for now, all we can do is sit here and hope that cipher will rescue us quickly~"





indentcipher was simply at his wits' ends as he moved from computer to computer, connecting and disconnecting usb cables as he struggled to fight back against the hacker who was trying to steal the documents of nakutsune, and ultimately delete aisuke from the databases. at this point, the showdown was starting to annoy the horned viscet, which didn't work well in his favour, since cipher tended to make rash(er) decisions when annoyed, and decisions that weren't thoroughly thought through when attempting to deal with a hacker could potentially spell the end to all of nakutsune's precious data files. he had absolutely no idea how the other hacker managed to get close enough to plant a virus among his firewalls, and also begin chipping away at aisuke's files, but it happened, and as cipher liked to say, 'there's no use in crying over spilled milk'.

indentat least, that's what he would've liked to say, especially in a situation like the one he was currently in. cursing loudly as his paws flew over the keyboards, his triple-ringed eyes flashed by each line of code, observing how the other hacker would respond with their own code, and learning ways to prevent the attacker from making more progress. it had came as such a huge shock when cipher realized that someone had managed to decrypt his codes, and although he technically hadn't completely woken up yet, several cans of red bull could do wonders in raising one's energy. besides, even if the red bull didn't work, the adrenaline coursing through cipher's spine would've been more than enough to make him antsier than usual.

indentheaving out a weary sigh as he reached for what seemed to be his fifth can of red bull, the triple-ringed viscet sipped at the liquid in annoyance, while his other paw smashed in the keys in his keyboard. for a moment, he wondered if he was evenly matched with the other hacker, but cipher quickly pushed the thought away from his head. he wouldn't accept the fact that there could be viscets who were better at the craft of coding and hacking than he was, and he was going to prove his true strengths by using the assailant as an example to any other viscets who would attempt to steal nakutsune's documents and delete aisuke.

indent"why isn't the hacker giving up? god, it seems like i'm battling against a robot or some type of a.i. that's trying to destroy nakutsune or something..." cipher muttered softly to himself, before shooting a quick glance towards the black screen of his phone. he had half-expected aisuke's pixelated face to pop up and berate him, but when the virtual viscet didn't show up, cipher pursed his lips together and let out a hiss of annoyance. "it'd actually make me feel better if i'm up against a robot or something like that. that way, i can still be confident that i'm the best viscet hacker in the world... that, and the fact that i could probably create something to block out the robot, if necessary."

indenthowever, much to cipher's relief, the other hacker had started to falter. their collection of smaller mistakes soon led way to larger risks and errors that made the triple-ringed male shake his head in disappointment, as he attempted to reconstruct the lock around the documents while fighting off the assailant at the same time. cipher was able to rebuild most of the lock when the other hacker began to retaliate again, but fortunately, the horned viscet was ready. he fought off the next wave of attacks with ease, and after he was fairly certain that he had chased off the other hacker, cipher returned his attention to fixing the lock and re-coding aisuke.

indentthe reconstruction stage seemed to occur so slowly, but gritting his sharp teeth in determination (and also annoyance, because aisuke never once showed up in his phone, even though he clearly told the ruler of nakutsune to visit in case something went wrong), cipher continued to work diligently. his claws clicked against the surface of the keys as he pressed lightly, and as he typed in the final line of code, he leaned back with a relieved sigh. then screen went black for a moment, and once it lit up, aisuke was standing on the other side of the screen, looking thoroughly confused and a little peeved. cipher let out a sigh of relief at the sight of the ruler of nakutsune, and he let his head drop and hit the desk. "geez, thank goodness everything worked out... how did the virus even embed itself into the code?"

indent"i don't know, cipher. however, i do want to know why you sent yin to see me," aisuke commented, as cipher scrunched up his features in confusion. his tail lashed from side to side in agitation, and he couldn't help but raise a paw to his lips and bite at one of his claws. if the virtual viscet picked up on his agitation, then he didn't let it show; aisuke's expression was as impassive as ever, almost as though he hadn't just gone through a harrowing ordeal that might've resulted in his deletion, had cipher not been there to prevent that from happening.

indent"... yin? i haven't seen the ghost in who knows how long, so i definitely did not send him to see you. besides, why did you never show up in my phone? i told you that we needed some form of communication, and since i had already downloaded you onto my phone, it's the easiest if you just showed up, instead of making me go through all those lines of code in order to fix you up." taking a moment to regain his breath, the horned viscet narrowed his eyes and he scrutinized the virtual viscet. while the ruler of nakutsune had been mostly patched up, there were still a few areas that he had missed. "well... whatever. we'll talk more about it later. for now, my first priority is to get you fixed up and not yelled at by the former coders, even though they were the ones who basically forced me to become a one-viscet team."

indentwhen aisuke raised a skeptical eyebrow from the other side of the screen, and cipher groaned quietly to himself and rubbed at a patch of scales on his paws. the raised eyebrow look, especially when it came from the ruler of nakutsune and was directed towards the hacker, was never a good sign for the latter viscet. "i still need to be fixed up? cipher, please enlighten me on why you haven't completely fixed my code yet," the virtual viscet questioned calmly, but when the horned viscet hesitantly raised his head, he could see traces of annoyance brimming within aisuke's eyes. aisuke's annoyance was justified, and cipher knew that; however, as the only one caring for the ruler's wellbeing, he didn't take welll to being questioned.

indent"i haven't completely re-coded you because i needed to know if you were still functioning properly, alright? i'll get to it after our talk, so feel free to do whatever," cipher muttered, before setting his paws onto his keyboard.



indent[ 3000 / 3000 words ]

indent[ viscets used/mentioned : aisuke, cipher, yin ]

[SilverSamurai]

“Do you have nothing more to say, Lilith?” The dark goddess questioned, her bright eyes cold and full of complicated emotions. I remained silent though, despite her push for me to go on. There was nothing more to say, after all. Deimos let out a heavy sigh before her eyes flashed with anger, a mist of magic forming at her fingertips. “Then, Lilith, be gone. As of now, you are no longer welcome in my council. Countless times you have endangered us for selfish gain, but you will turn on us no more.” A knowing smile formed on my lips as I listen to the carefully formed words, but the smirk soon turned to confusion as Deimos’ magic solidified.

The thin Red String that I knew all too well tied tightly around my arm, and a wolfish skull placed heavy onto my head. Before I could speak, the goddesses voice continued, a hint of sorrow in her tone, “You were my right hand, chief of the Shinigami, and the obvious choice to lead the rebellion, and a close friend.” She stopped, a little choked up but determined not to show emotion in such a time. Deimos continued after clearing her throat,

“Lilith, you are exiled for eternity to the Mortal world of Karna. Should you be freed by a being only as selfish as yourself, you are not to leave that world. The skull will remain heavy on your head from here on out, as a symbol and reminder of your banishment from here. Now be gone, Shinigami.”

As if on cue, the Red String pulsed with light and as quick as it appeared it was gone once more, but I could still feel the tightness of it, as if confining my to my very core. I looked up to the goddess I had served and offered her a final smile, a soft gesture that spoke where words could not. But it was too late for friendliness and affection, as the goddess’ eyes narrowed in response. “Be gone, Shinigami.” And with her final words, I slipped into unconsciousness.



---------------------------------



I’m not sure how long I was unconscious, but when I awoke I found myself in a wide clearing, as the farthest end stood a massive willow tree, its roots weaved through the earth and made the surrounding earth lumpy. I slowly got to me feet, a stabbing pain pulsing through my body as I looked myself over for injury. I appeared fine, must have taken a tumble. However, my ears instantly pinned as I came to another realization. This wasn’t like the plane of reality we usually resided in. No, this place was bright and colorful, and full of life.

And it was hot.

I looked to the sky, only to be blinded by the light the star above gave off. This would take some getting used to…. I have been here, of course. Karna was a lively planet full of mortals; in fact it was one of the easiest places of work. With life came sorrow, and harvesting souls was easy here. However, night was a much better time to roam.

I took a step forward, only to be pulled back. Looking back, I saw the glint of the String keeping me in place, and I sighed. Moving in the other direction, I carefully padded towards the large tree looming over the clearing. It’s branches were full of tear-shaped leaves, the bright green sheen it gave off was almost overwhelming at first. With a sigh, I dug a hollow at the base of the tree as a makeshift nest and lay myself inside. The shade and dug out earth providing a bit of relief from the muggy mid-day heat.

Glancing around, I take note of the heavy underbrush on the sides of the clearing, deeming this place well protected from the outside wilderness. With a heavy sigh, I rest my head on my paws and try to take in my situation. I knew this was coming, but I thought life on a Mortal planet wouldn’t be this harsh.

The hardest time during my exile was undoubtedly the first few months, where I learned the harshness of a Mortal summer. (700)

[dzo]

{ PROMPT 2 : something important happened to your Viscets this summer-- whether it be good or bad, what happened and how did they handle it? }

Laurel got a babysitting job this summer and met three amazing kids. While playing, their childish innocence reteach her the things she has lost throughout the years while on her journey into adulthood.

It was a nice summer day for the humans to release Discovery into the shared outdoor pen. However, one of the other viscets was startled by the viscet’s presence. The viscet attacked Discovery and so she was rushed to the operation table. Before she even realized what is going on, Discovery found herself in a dreamlike world. She starts to explore and is confused until she becomes conscious of the fact that she is dreaming. In this dream world, monsters released by death itself start to track her down and hunt her, but she cannot wake up: all she can do is run and hide.

[Viscet stance obviously referenced off Spiderman poses]
It was a tough decision. "Was auditioning for the lead role it even worth it?" Alaska feared. She badly wanted to be Spiderman in a summer play. All the other auditioners were boys. Most of them thought she was auditioning for a different role. With her love for both gymnastics and acting, it would be a fun role to play, but she didn't believe she even had a chance. She sat, daydreaming of her being a star in the play: captivating the audience while jumping from post to post and doing flips while being supported by lines from above. It was almost her time to go up, and she felt like leaving. Soon her name was called up, and all the faces in the room turned to her in shock. She walked past them with a smile, even though she was an anxious mess.

The warmth of summer always brings back fond memories. I mean, It was a summer day in which she met her best friend. When a little girl revealed herself to her, Aatu was very scared. Aatu didn’t know what harm this being would cause, but the girl was peaceful and calm, showing no harm- only friendship.

“...And on that eternal shining summer night, she looked around for complex life. She looked to the left, then the right. She looked up to the stars remembering the planet that was once her home, but on this night she discovered she was truly alone.”

[Hail.]

To Free

-----She laid low in the tall leaves of the forest. Never before would she have dreamed how beautiful the overgrown land outside of Libra's vortex would be, yet she had no time to take in its beauty.

-----To the far left, a light shined, and she ducked her head lower, flattening the feathers of her mane against her back.

-----They searched in silence, their bodies a silhouette with a beam of yellow light at the core, scanning the overgrowth. Their paws disturbed the grasses, shuffling the leaves and giving a clear pronunciation of their location.

-----She watched them, weighing her options and chances against them. There were two, only one with a light. She took a step forward, her mind settling on the theory that she could over power them.

-----Another light sent her reeling back into the shadowy safety of the overgrowth.

-----More had arrived, three this time, to the North. One with the light, two with very clearly outlined weapons: an ax and a bow.

-----She turned away, moving quietly in the large leaves, and began to skulk to the right. She turned her head away from the groups, though her left ear remained focused in on their sounds.

-----She crept to the edge of the grass and took a glance in their direction. Light flashed over the broad leaves and she froze, closing her eye to prevent any sort of reflection. She felt the light pass over her, like an ethereal warmth, then opened her eyes once more. Their attention was behind her now, scanning the leaves she had been in.

-----Seizing her opportunity, she pushed forward, fighting her instinct to sprint. She crept through the grass, moving awkwardly low to the ground, her hands touching the grass every now and then for balance, and to a large fallen tree which was stained with moss and mushrooms.

-----She smoothly slipped over it and ducked behind it as the beam of light moved her direction once more, illuminating the minuscule spores which floated around the mushrooms like particles of dust.

-----Her ears rose and she took in the environment around her through sound. The North group was now close to her, on the left side of the log and searching a nearby tree's branches. The Left group was now directly South of her, investigating a one of the tracks she accidentally left in the soft dirt.

-----Her chest condensed and she turned her back to the log. Ahead was a patch of thick leaves, though it was too far to reach safely. On the way, however, trees with thick leaves stood firmly in the soil. Her muscles twitched at the risk, but obeyed the command of her brain none-the-less.

-----She moved swiftly, dashing low to the ground with her arms tucked in and her legs taking long strides, her tail held stiffly behind her for balance. She reached the third tree, then sprang up, catching a lower branch and dragging herself up higher. Each movement was cautious, but rushed.

-----A twig snapped.

-----She bit her tongue as her tail curled into the tree beside her and her ears flicked to face below. The North group had heard.

-----A whistle rang from their direction, and the other group whistled in response. Both began moving toward her tree.

-----Her eyes darted, straining to see through the thick foliage.

-----Her legs moved first this time, launching her through the branches and into the next tree. She caught herself on its branches and turned her ears back, cautious to not look in their direction as to avoid any reflections. They examined the tree she was in thoroughly, whispering and muttering to each other. Her feathers bristled as she caught onto one word:

-----Fire.

-----As quickly as she heard it, it began. One viscet launched flames at the tree and the world suddenly became illuminated by harsh yellow-orange light.

-----She took no chances, springing down from her tree promptly and sprinting. She heard their exclaims as they saw her and felt her heart hitch into her throat. She fought back the panic and forced a flood of calm to overwhelm her senses, particularly her ears.

-----She listened as feet thudded after her, and as a particularly bone chilling sound slowly rang out as the bow string was stretched back.

-----Steady. Steady she ran, keeping her direction and focusing in on the sound of the bow until it no longer made a sound. The archer was taking aim now. She waited and waited, each second feeling like and hour. Then, finally, the sound of fingers sliding from the string reached her ears.

-----She jolted to the right, alternating her path just as the arrow zipped by, ripping the air where her head was apart.

-----She leaned low to the ground, pushing every ounce of strength she had into each step, all though she knew that in the end, she had no where to run.

-----To her right, her ear picked up the sound of whipping branches all too late.

-----The large viscet lunged at her, his mouth opening and revealing gleaming, saliva soaked, white fangs. His tongue curled tighter in his mouth, pulling back to protect his throat, and his lips pulled back and up, giving full sight to those massive, sharp canines.

-----She could only turn her head and stare as the male flew at her in what seemed like slow motion. She noticed every single detail of his attack: how his eyes squinted shut, how his hands raised at neck-level to catch her torso, and how his hind legs moved up and forward to catch himself and pin her.

-----And, how odd silvery-blue light illuminated below him as ice shot from the ground and through his torso.

-----She came to a screeching halt as time jolted back. The male slumped over without a sound and she stared with wide, horror-stricken eyes. Behind her, that silvery-blue light shined once more and ice arose from the ground again, creating a wall between her and her pursuers.

-----She stared at the ice wall for a moment, then felt a strange presence. Her body whipped around to face the invader and she stared at the luminous red-pink eyes of a spirit.

-----Her mind was silent, suddenly unable to find words or actions, as it attempted over and over again to process what her eyes were seeing. While she hesitated, the spirit wasted no time.

-----"Come, Ivy. Now."

-----She turned away and beckoned with a paw, then dashed into the woods, her paws leaving trails of glittering light. Ivy took a moment and glanced back at the ice wall. She could hear the viscets moving around it and shouting, some fearful and some wrathful.

-----Ivy turned and ran after the spirit, following the trail of light deeper into the woods.

To Hide

-----Quexa stepped into the dead lands, her spirit taking form feather-by-feather as the teleportation was completed.

-----Her eyes scanned the horizon, knowing well that this was the camp of that female, but somehow unsure if she would still find her.

-----She did not know what it was that drew her to this particular females home. She was known for her fiery outputs of rage, and she had a child of her own to care for. Still, she could not shake the feeling that she was in the right place, somehow, and that this viscet born of fire and molten rock would be able to help her save Ivy.

-----She walked along, her paws floating just above the dry ground, and scanned the outside of the den for any traces of fire or light. A steady frown formed on her lips and she lowered her head to peer within.

-----From behind her, the voice of her target sounded, as gruff and sharp as ever.

-----"What do you think you are doing?"

-----Quexa released a slow breath from her nostrils and turned her head, rising to her full height to face Pele, though she knew intimidation would not work on this viscet. Though smaller than most, Pele's fiery temperament gave her a fearless aura which made any threats or attempts to strike fear ineffective.

-----"Pele. You are looking well."

-----The fire-born female folded her arms and puffed her chest slightly, annoyance gleaming in her eyes. "You are looking the same as always. So, to what may I owe the pleasure of seeing you here, so far in the East?" She spat the word pleasure, emphasizing the forced sarcasm.

-----"I have a simple request." Pele snorted and rolled her eyes, but the fire which crafted her mane slowly lowered in intensity, revealing her interest. "I found someone, a female."

-----Pele raised an eyebrow. "I didn't take you for that kind of viscet, but okay."

-----Quexa pinned her ears to the back of her head and glowered at Pele. "That is not what I mean. One of the visclings, stolen away by Libra. I found one trying to escape."

-----Slowly, the aggression in Pele's face and tone melted away like lava, seeping to the floor. "Really?" She stepped forward, her ears raising high, then took a moment to scan the horizon. She had told none of the other two guardians of Libra's actions regarding visclings, and her current gesture made it clear that she still did not intend to. "Where is she now?"

-----"Safe, but in the West. I need your help getting her here - or at least, I need. . ."

-----Her voice trailed off. Her request was a risky one, an act of desperation. Pele's fear for her daughter kept a harsh shield of protection over the viscets back and actions, and while Quexa knew her request would not be taken fondly, she pleaded with the Land of Clouds above that Pele would find reason.

-----"No." Pele's response was harsh and the anger slowly entered her body again, causing her mane to rise. "Anahita is not going to the West!"

-----"I will travel with her. You know I can protect her. The girl is just on the shore line, hidden in trees and underground pathways. Anahita is the only swimmer strong enough to carry her to the East."

-----Pele scowled and opened her mouth slightly, as if to argue, then paused. Slowly, that aggression was forcefully restrained within herself as she released an unstable breath and closed her eyes. "So be it. . . But Quexa, I swear to you. If any harm befalls Anahita, the wrath of all the volcanoes and beasts of the land will not be enough to match the amount of rage I will rain down on you until your very soul is nothing more than dust in the wind."

-----Quexa met Pele's eyes. She knew her words were genuine, yet she trembled not. She nodded firmly, accepting the warning Pele gave her, then slowly turned her eyes to the distant mountains marking the border between the East and West. "I suppose we should be thankful that it is Summer. Any other season would have seen your daughter on one of her hidden islands."

-----Pele nodded slowly, her gaze following Quexa's as her mind drifted to the young viscet which was to arrive.

-----Ivy.

-----The visclings stolen by Libra all had one thing in common: magic, weak or strong. Her mouth slowly curled into a frown as she pondered the type of magic this particular viscling would hold.

-----A pang of anger rattled in her chest as she pondered the possibility that this could all be a trick. All visclings she and Quexa had studied in Libra's castle were fiercely loyal, even until death. Still. . .

-----She released a sigh and nodded to Quexa. "Anahita is fishing just off the shore, about a mile out. Find her and bring that girl to saftey." Quexa nodded and faded off, the mist which made up her body traveling out to sea. Pele's eyes drifted to the mountains to the far East, the ones Allaster - the leader of the guardians - lived in. The arrival of Ivy meant many things, among them was that she now held yet another thing to hide from the male.

-----She brushed off the tightness of her chest and entered her den and began to dig, working in a third room within her home.

2,041 words

[Corvuss]

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[Gadgetrocks]

Marking with art!

Pearl and Saber go on a date... let's see how this goes...
Don't think she wanted to go to a random snake filled rainforest...

As the gold vines across her paws burned up, a golden fire erupted from the Queen's paws. "If I'm going to conquer Odriarene, this is a good second step..."

Not the best photographed traditional art, my scanner broke, but the art was done. If I get it working, I'll replace this art.

"I see... The Queen? Two viscets with an egg, and in the distance, a viscet with a dragon? I can't tell exactly what this future holds..."

Kaliyah decides to go and hunt a dragon

"I knew I shouldn't have taken that map from that shifty merchant, darn it!"

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Viscets used; Tea, Takeo, Queen Midas, Kaliyah, Saber, Pearl (With permission)