1x1 with sugarbird

[sugarbird]

-----The wizard didn't receive a name out of the dragon, instead, getting nothing more than angry huffs. Orion watched the silence pan out for a solid few seconds, feeling a bit of uncertainty at what Alphonse would do to her. He can hardly predict what the man would do anymore- he's acted all kinds of ways in his whole life. But, the dragoness luckily got something fairly tame. He supposed he should've guessed that his master would know that a wild dragon simply won't listen to him on their first day of arrival. "Very well, you don't have to tell me. I'll name you.. let's see.." he paused for a second, stroking his beard. "Amber." Amber? Orion couldn't help but wrinkle his nose a little at that. It was a bit too gaudy of a name for his tastes- and he can't imagine what the other dragon must think about that.

-----"Well my dear, we will leave you be. Try anything you'd like in here, you won't get out." The wizard pointed the palm of his hand up towards the window, chanting something loud and firm at it. His fingertips started to emit rays of bright light going every direction, and a large glowing half circle encased the entire chamber for a brief moment before suddenly disappearing into thin air. "Well, that was.. more precaution than was needed." He took a pace or two closer to the dragon, resting his arms against his side. "Unchain her." Alphonse commanded, the other guards eyeing each other with uncertainty. "Do it. Now." His gaze did not move from the dragon's as the men did what was told of them. "Now, get out of here." They hurriedly took the chains with them as they left, all the guards working together to close and bar the doors behind them.

-----Now Alphonse was locked in with her. "Amber, my dear, you will be the brightest, most beautiful jewel that I'll have at my gathering tomorrow. I look foreword to it." he spoke through a little smile. His gaze did not move from hers, watching her closely should she suddenly try to attack. He was prepared for it. Putting two fingers to his mouth, he began to whistle lowly. Though it was a bit quiet, it was more than enough for Orion to hear it from any part in the mansion. Hearing this through the metal doors, Orion suddenly scampered over to them with a haste and fear in his gait.

-----"Orion, stay down here beyond the doors. Alert me the moment anything goes wrong." "How- how long should I--" "The entire time." "Yes.. yes lord." he responded meekly, remembering that Alphonse hated it when Orion talked to him at all. The wizard was so used to Orion just saying nothing and doing what was told that any kind of word that came out of his mouth was automatically seen as talking back. "Don't listen to a word she might say to you. I wouldn't worry about her talking an awful lot, though." he hummed, glancing back at the dragoness for a moment.

-----"I'll leave you to your lonesome, Amber. I'm going back upstairs. I'll see you in a few." The man clasped his hands together and chanted another spell, one that allowed him to teleport somewhere else. In an instant, he disappeared and left behind nothing but a few lingering flecks of light that eventually dissipated. Orion then circled one spot just in front of the chamber doors before slumping down on the hard floors to lay down. He then sighed heavily, hating the fact that he's stuck down here in his least favorite part of the mansion.

[Bronzewing]

She stared into him, not taking her eyes off his- the classic draconic form of challenge. Eyes met eyes, stances mirrored between the two- that was the way dragons were meant to fight. You knew exactly who you were fighting against- and the first person to take their eyes off the other was usually the loser. Of course, there was a lot more to their battles. This human definitely didn't know that, as they took their eyes off her without even understanding the nature of the challenge. Stupid man. She made a note of that for later on.

Amber was...complicated. She had known a dragon by that name once- Amber the Storyteller. An older dragon with scales of polished gemstone and eyes the color of honey- the same smooth voice as her eyes gave away. Lovely dragoness. They disappeared a long time ago, the cave where they used to reside full of strewn papers and deep claw marks. Nobody had ever reported seeing lovely Amber again- and now to this man, she was Amber. He wouldn't have known, but it felt like a disrespect. This man, thinking he could disrespect a beast of the skies and sands! She tossed her head around, trying to hide her laughing grin.

So it seemed that he put some kind of precautionary field on the whole chamber. That took away her small thought of breaking through the window- it would have been too small for her to get herself through either way. There was nothing to break in the small room, nothing she could do except think to herself and see how many scorchmarks she could cover the ground in. Those protection shields were to help her stay in, not to protect the architecture from draconic claws and flames. Keeping her eyes firmly on the guards as they unchained her, lunging out at the closest one just for the fun of it, she watched their retreat. Nothing she could do about that with the doors and the circular field and whatever else the man had put into place.

What gathering? Is this a good place for me to set people on fire? she thought, eyes shining in anticipation. Who was going to get burned tomorrow?

And now somebody else was outside the door? She guessed it was that other dragon, the sad looking one, more like a pet than a real dragon. It was shameful yet saddening at the same time. Coming closer to the door, she held her head against the opening to see if she could hear what they were speaking of. She could. It appeared that a conversation could be held through the door, and maybe this sad dragon was worth talking to. It would relieve her boredom, after all.

[sugarbird]

-----Orion laid there with a dead stare towards the opposite wall, his sadness from earlier this morning returning to him. Being down here in the chambers was always depressing, and reminded him of just how much he wished he could view the outside world, just take a peek at it. Any part of nature has to be better than these dark cells only lit by flame light. But, he will admit, today has been way, way more interesting than usual. It will be a very new experience, having this fiery dragoness as a roommate. It will be a hard adjustment for sure. Hopefully this new female doesn't plot to rip his throat out one night after she's done with this chamber.

-----However, he figured that she'd be broken sometime in the next few months anyway. Orion had full confidence that Alphonse would eventually find some way to break her spirit. Whether he'd do it fairly or unfairly, it wouldn't matter. Somehow, someway, he'd be able to overpower and break seven lions at once if he wanted to. Of course, Orion was merely being incredibly negative. He didn't know anything about this dragon, nor did he understand just how spirited she truly was.

-----Hearing the subtle clicking noises of claws against steel head towards his direction, the male then slightly shifted himself away from the door in case she'd try to bust through it and accidently bump him with the force of her attack. There was a pause of silence that hung above him as he heard nothing more from the dragon that was trapped inside. It was a bit agonizing, laying there and just bracing for any loud snarls or sounds of resistance as they both remained silent for that moment. If she was going to attack the door, he was going to jump out of his skin right then and there.

-----But, there was nothing. Instead, she seemed to be sitting there. Probably thinking to herself. He couldn't see her, obviously, but he felt a pair of glaring eyes stare directly through the doors and at him. She could probably smell him. Oh goodness, this was unbearable. Just.. do something. Say something. Break the tension, you moron. Orion awkwardly shifted again, starting his morning routine of preening his wings. He lightly unfurled a wing and nipped at it for a moment before suddenly stopping. Just- do it! Now! It's not like she can hurt you!

-----After more silence for a second or two, the dragon spoke up. "Um.. h-hey." he began quietly, not expecting the dragoness to answer. It's okay- she didn't have to. She hasn't said a single word to anyone since she's arrived here, understandably so. "I know you probably don't want to hear me talk right now, but.. I just wanted to say I'm sorry." He continued to groom his feathers as he talked, still far from accustomed to talking to another of his own kind. "It might seem bad right now, and it is.. but.. the transition will be smoother if you just lay low and don't fight back. Alphonse will treat you well soon enough, he just.. he's just an entitled fool." He was fully confident in saying that, as Orion never had to worry about prying ears overhearing what he says. His master barely listens to him at all anyway. He can't remember the last time it's even talked more than ten words to him without getting angry with him.

-----"He'll stop noticing you soon enough once you've been here for a few days. And then, you can do what you wish. Trust me."

[Bronzewing]

She paced around in circles, the sinuous movements of her body keeping the dragoness occupied for a short time. Her scales already heated to a blazing temperature, she had already noticed that neither the ground nor walls were reacting. The human had most definitely placed something on them to keep them dragon-safe. While he wasn't a very smart man, he definitely knew what he was doing when it came to trapping dragons. She wouldn't be surprised if his smiling face was the last thing some of her kin had seen.

She despised him, and also despised this room. But the other dragon- the strange feathery one- they seemed to have sense. They didn't seem as if they were working with him, trying to gain her trust before doing whatever the man wanted. They had the aura of a pet, but an exotic pet instead of a loyal working dog. Most likely they were worth talking to, something at least more interesting than staring at the door until it finally opened. She wouldn't bother attacking it- after testing out the walls she already knew that if she charged she would only get a bad bump on the head.

She stood there by the door, feeling that the other dragon was still out there- he hadn't left yet. She would have left within the minute if somebody had asked her to watch a door- no use in watching something or somebody that couldn't get out. But no- this other dragon stayed where they were, watching the door, and she was on the other side watching back. She hadn't spoken yet, and wouldn't be the one to start.

Once he spoke, she sat there and listened to him. She could tell how awkward this was for them, having to speak to a door. So she paused for a bit longer to make things a bit more awkward for the other dragon before she finally started to speak. "Hearing somebody talk is more entertaining than sitting in here." she spoke with a huff. "He's trying to make me into a pet. A great beast of the desert would never let something like that happen to them." Smoke came off her scales, and she wondered if it couild make it out of the room.

"I can lay low until things make sense." she said, a tad thoughtfully. "But only until I get get out of here or get my teeth on his neck. Only until he doesn't expect a thing." Baring her teeth in a maniacal way behind the door, her tail lashed across the ground. She knew he couldn't see her.

"He won't notice me?" she said, a plan hatching. "Then he won't notice you either. What do you say- want to get out of here with me?"

[sugarbird]

-----More silence after that. He did see this coming, but it didn't make it any less unpleasant or awkward. Orion just continued to preen, expecting nothing more to come out of this "conversation." So, he was very surprised to hear an answer come from the other side of that door eventually. Her voice was raspy, growly. It greatly caught him off guard, as he expected her to sound like a human when she talked, he's been isolated from his own kind for so long. But he forgot that she was a fellow dragon. The vocal differences between the two were much more distinguishable than he remembered.

-----He was delighted that she didn't decide to toss her anger out on him when she spoke. Though, he supposed if she really wanted trouble she probably wouldn't have spoken a word back to him in the first place. Orion couldn't help but lower his head a little at the word pet. It has been an awful long time since he's last thought of himself as that. He's thought of himself as a.. a houseplant, or a decoration, something that just sits around for his master to occasionally look at and maybe show off to friends. The servants fed him and groomed him everyday, and even then they just immediately ignored him afterwards. He wouldn't even really compare himself to a pet. Alphonse would actually pay attention to him or show a tiny bit of affection if he was a true pet. Being a pet probably would be worse, if that were the case. Amber, however, this dragoness, she's going to be more like a pet than Orion will be. Lord Alphonse talked about her being a good guard dragon, something that actually has a job to do in service of the wizard.

-----But the things she said next concerned him. The things she wanted to do to his master would be impossible. He wasn't so concerned about what would happen to the wizard, he was more concerned about what would happen to her. Even if she somehow did manage to kill Alphonse, which was already a silly thing to think about, the entirety of the guards surrounding the property would hunt her down in an instant. And she wanted him to be involved in an escape plan as well? She was talking crazy. Orion wasn't going to say that to her, of course. But that idea seemed so laughably impossible to him. "W-woah. Um.. let's just, think about this for a second." he responded with uncertainty. "You still have an entire army of guards surrounding both the outside and some parts of the inside of the property to worry about. Servants, too. There are eyes everywhere."

-----"L-look, I understand that it's horribly unfair to you that you're here, a-a-and you want to return home. But- attempting escape is pointless. You can't say you even know the layout of this mansion in the first place." Orion was always fairly pessimistic, and didn't ever create a goal to strive for. He had no hope of seeing the outside world. The closest he'd ever get was the master's garden, which did have plenty of greenery inside of it. It always managed to cheer him up a little, being in there. There were massive windows everywhere in this place true, but it only ever showed so much. Nothing but a brick road going down the hill this mansion was resting atop and to even more buildings. It was mostly nothing but city that surrounded this place.

-----However, there was a mountain that one could see beyond the human civilization. Massive and imposing, and still filled to the brim with forest. He could see the density of the trees even from all that distance away. Orion always wanted to go there, but just never even considered going there to be a possibility. Thinking about it just now really dampened his spirits again. This must be just a taste of what this other dragon was feeling right now, being ripped from her home like that. "Even if you do know the layout like I do, there's just.. no hope. Every exit and window is either protected by a ward spell, or surrounded by eyes. This mansion, this operation that Alphonse has going on here-- it's too valuable, too heavily protected. Rarely anything comes in or goes back out." Orion rested his head against the floor again. "But.. if you want to try, then that's okay. You're probably just going to get captured and sent right back to the mansion. Alphonse wouldn't find it worth it to hurt you."

-----Orion even entertained this female's idea, fully confident that she'll just get taken straight back here. That, and there was no possible way he could ever change the mind of a wild, stubborn dragon. "You'd have the best chance of escape at one of his gatherings, which is luckily tomorrow. If you behave well enough today, then he might let you roam free for it, and most everyone should be distracted by the tricks I'll perform for them. Maybe." He lightly tapped his feathered tail against the floor in boredom, already feeling just a bit better talking more than just a few words at a time to someone. It felt good, having a real conversation with an actual dragon. "Just, don't be surprised if you get subdued by a multitude of mages the moment you break a ward or sneak out the front door."

[Bronzewing]

This guy was definitely talkative. How they could say so much just from her few sentences- she could tell they were possibly a bit lonely. The humans didn't seem like they would be much for conversation, and why in the world would they be anyway? The feathered dragon likely didn't have anybody to talk to. Shame that he might not see her for long- she planned to have liberty or death, to be free or to perish here. The only way they would stick together would be if he went with her, and she doubted he had the moxie to do something like that. Poor dragon.

She shook her head, running her tongue across the smaller scales at the front of her lips. The other dragon didn't appear to have the same vocal inflections as she did- still obviously draconic but with an accent quite like that of a human. They had been here for wayh too long, longer than any human's lifespan should ever hope to be. It was like being in prison for the rest of your life- the dank dungeons that were created in ruins under the sand for dragons that broke the peace. Those prisons hadn't been used for ages at this point and she guessed that if she ever went back, they would have caved in. Too few dragons to even imprison somebody for a crime. Not that this wasn't just a fancy prison now- although she hadn't committed a crime, and neither did the dragon on the other side of the door.

"There could be as many guards as the man wants there to be." she said. "Most dragons that come here die. If I don't get out of here, I'll join them." She paced around the room yet again, claws digging into the magical wards lining the floor before trotting back over to the door. "Servants would want to get on his good side- but they risk getting on my bad side. Only one of the two means instant death."

Lehra wasn't called the Warmaker for nothing. She was willing to be vicious- willing to tear out throats or whatever else the dragoness saw necessary. She wasn't a pacifist by any nature. If the problem could be solved by killing the offender, so be it. "I don't know the layout, but there's always something. Besides, you do." If he didn't want to get out himself, he could stay to his lonely life in here. Either way he had the information, and she would either get it from him or learn it herself.

"Eyes don't matter. If there's too much chaos, then we can get out before they dare mobilize. If there's no wards, what's stopping us from running down a slew of guards? They'll expect people, not raging dragons." she said with a small laugh. "He can't stop me from trying. Even if that doesn't work, pretending to be a guard may. Who would guess their own guards would run out?" Oh, she was somehow amused by this. The entire idea of kicking the wizard in the hypothetical face sounded amazing to her. This dragon knew the way around, and she could force her way out!

"Tomorrow? Wonderful. I can be out of here in a day. We go up to one of those windows, or even the door as people come in, and step out. The chaos, the dancing! They might not even realize I'm gone until I am. And you...if you're performing, you can distract their silly faces."

She started laughing behind the door- as if she had already gone mad, or if the sand she was once surrounded with had made its way into her skull cavity.

[sugarbird]

-----Now, Orion wasn't expecting to change her mind at all. But the mention of all the obstacles, all the people surrounding them, all the wards.. none of that even somewhat fazed her. Not even a little bit. He was expecting at least some kind of pause, some time to think of a proper plan from her. But no- quite literally, she in it to either live and escape, or fail and perish. She didn't care what the outcome would be. It seemed she'd rather die than stay here. Given the fact that she was a wild dragon that just wanted badly to go home, it made sense. But Orion wasn't wild, and didn't see any sense in it yet. And it was only at her last statement that he actually thought about why she didn't care about the outcome.

-----While she was in there laughing like mad, Orion just laid there dumbly with widened eyes at what she said. She may very well be crazy, as evidenced by her confident cackles coming from nowhere when she had no reason to be joyously laughing. This is a stupid, fruitless plan, no doubt. And nothing could come out of it besides the overwhelming chance of death or injury. But something the dragoness said just then really stood out to him for some reason. "Most dragons that come here die. If I don't get out of here, I'll join them." Most dragons that come here die. He's been here for eight decades, and still walks, talks, lives. But.. does he really live? Or- is he just a walking corpse? What does he do that makes his life fulfilling? What does he accomplish to make life worth living?

-----Nothing. Nothing at all. Since when did what you want matter? Your petty thoughts don't matter. he scolded to himself in his head, repeating the words that Alphonse said to him a while back. Orion blinked a bit as he realized he could do something that he was never aware he could do. Wait.. when was the last time I thought about what I wanted? What do I want? What he wanted.. was to leave. He wanted to go see that mountain, to go see the outside world. He's read in the master's books about how wonderful the outside world was. He saw pictures of jungles, of deserts, of seas in those books, and he remembers just staring at them for ages at a time in wonder. And they were mere pictures. Was that what he wanted? To see the world and live?

-----Something in him just clicked. He might never see the outside world again, but anything would be better than this. Talking to this dragoness even for a single minute made him realize just how alone he truly was. He loathed being here, and he loathed living here. Every time he slept, a part of him wished he never woke up to experience another day of the exact same thing over and over and over. For eighty one years he lived as a house plant, doing the same things, following the same commands, living the same exact day over, and over, and over again. Alphonse wouldn't value Orion as much as he does this dragoness, since she was probably an even rarer specimen than he. If Orion attempted escape, there's no telling what the wizard would do to him. So, if Orion were to die trying, then.. he supposed he would also join the dead with her. That would be okay with him. "..Okay. Okay." he started in agreement, nodding his head to no one in particular.

-----"You w-would.. you would allow me to come with you?" he asked meekly, turning to face the door. "I might not last a single minute out there, whether it be in the escape or the wild, if we make it, b-but.. I will be as useful as I can be for the time I live."

[Bronzewing]

She couldn't believe that he hadn't already tried to get out. If he had been here for years, the situation he seemed to be in- why wouldn't he have run off by now? Most likely, she reasoned, he wasn't a "escape or die" type of dragon. Living, even here, would be better than getting yourself killed trying to run away. She couldn't understand how a dragon could think that way, how somebody would be so fearful of death that they stayed in captivity forever. Dragons lived a long time, and being stuck here for that lengthy of a life sounded like torture.

She noticed that he was silent for a time. Likely thinking, but about what she didn't actually know. Maybe it was what she said- maybe he was listening to her, or maybe he was thinking of a better way to convince her to stay. If that was his plan, they were wasting their breath. If they were as loyal as a dog, she would lead them on like one. Lehra hoped- greatly hoped- she would have at least one ally in here. They didn't seem like a bad dragon, just a strange one, and it would be better to have them come along than to be escaping alone. She wasn't even entirely sure she could get out of there on her own- escape or die trying was still her plan, but if he told the men about her plan...

She really hoped he was trustworthy enough not to talk. If he DARED talk and she somehow got out, she would show him the real force of a desert-fairing Warmaker.

She stopped laughing, after some time not even realizing she was doing it. "If you want to come with me and see if we can be alive, I won't even dream of stopping you." she said, smiling behind the closed door. Maybe he was better than she thought. "If we make it out alive, the wild is nothing compared to this. I've been out there my entire life- if you want to be out in the sky with me, I can show you the ropes."

[sugarbird]

-----Even though the offer was already laid out to him moments before, and she was more than willing to bring him along already, a ton of relief still hit him at once. Now this- this day somehow got even more interesting than before. Though he'd hate to have his life possibly end on such a sour note with it being as dull and sad as it was and pretty much always has been, it wouldn't be worth it to pass this opportunity up. If Orion had to choose between possibly dying to attempt escape or definitely dying of old age after wasting the rest of his life here, then the former would be the better option. Strange how mere minutes ago his answer would've been different.

-----The offer she gave him was awfully generous. Not only would she allow him to accompany her during their escape, but she'd even teach him how to live as a dragon out there. Viciousness and possible insanity aside, she was very kind to him so far. Well, for one thing, she didn't even attempt to kill him whereas she tried hard with the other men that had captured her and brought her in. She especially hated Alphonse- that much was clear. Orion's chest heaved with both a newfound sense of excitement, something he hasn't felt in at least a decade, but it also came with a ton of fear. What he wouldn't give for this eventual plan to work out.

-----"I appreciate your generosity." he spoke lightly, stopping himself from just pouring his heart out into a bunch of thank-yous he wanted to give her. "You got caught at a good time. So, about these gatherings, I suppose I should brief you on those." Orion's voice was a bit hush now, and his ears were swiveled behind him to listen for any possible guards that would come in and check on them. He wouldn't be surprised if Alphonse sent some down there just in case, considering the wizard only trusted the dragon with very few tasks. However, he must've let Orion watch over her this one time since he was so confident she couldn't get out at all. That was a possibility too. Still, he didn't risk letting his guard down because of that.

-----"The master sets up these.. parties for his rich friends, business partners, and family to visit. They all come in through the main door, the same one you just arrived through. The huge main lobby adjacent to it is where the gatherings typically take place, and everyone usually waits in a line before the door to come in all at once. Since you're new here and still wanting to leave, I've no doubt that the main guards will close and lock the door behind them." he brought up clearly, not wasting time with small talk and trying to get to the point. "So.. maybe what would be best would be to try and steal a keyring off of one of the guards. Somehow."

[Bronzewing]

Would he take the chance? He didn't seem like a brave dragon, not the sort to even start surviving in the wild. He was a sad creature, somebody that was more of a something than a somebody due to the way they were being treated. She had to admit it made her rather upset, and she repeated the same mantra to herself every so often.

If you attack and kill them, they'll go crazy and kill you. The point is to get out, and maybe take revenge later. Revenge is not the largest priority.

But she sure did wish it was! There was no point in hurting her fellow dragon, after all, just the men. They were the ones that killed and enslaved dragons- the feathered one- did she know his name?- hadn't had anything to do with that. If they had been the one tricking dragons into cages and pots to be distilled into elixirs, then she would be upset. From what she knew, they were just yet another victim of the horrible people that did whatever they wanted with such proud beasts.

"I see it less as generosity and more of something...almost necessary. A dragon should not rot in here." she said with a shake of her head, although he couldn't see her. This was good- she could tell that there would be an ally escaping with her. That was much better than leaving alone. "Maybe they wanted me for these gatherings. Well, they'll soon learn that was a bad idea." She could barely speak, that was how much she was smiling. "Sure, go ahead. Tell me about these gatherings.

Lehra listened silently until the other dragn had finished speaking. "Somebody would definitely see us if we ran through the front doors while people are filing in, and somebody may even manage to pin us down for the men to catch." she said, thinking. "So...the guards would have to actually lock that door, yeah? With the keys? That could be when we take the keys. They may not have all of their guards locking the doors, of all things, since they would have to watch the guests. We could probably kill them and be out before they can get word out."