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Post by Behax on Jun 26, 2015 21:53:11 GMT
Stark leaned back a little when Bane twisted his neck to look around at him, despite reassurances he still didn't know how he felt about a big fire breathing lizard. Though the idea of flying was a more imminent concern. When he felt Dynas sit behind him, he tensed. He didn't really trust him either, but then it wasn't like he didn't have cause. He reflexively gripped the saddle tight with his legs, once the dragon rose up onto his feet. He immediately followed Dynas' suggestion, and gripped the front of the saddle. He was already not liking this, and the damn dragon wasn't even off the ground yet. "Please don't do that." Stark said hastily when Dynas mentioned how a barrel roll would be completely safe. Safe as it may be....He didn't want to experience that....Ever.
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Post by kaidashade on Jun 26, 2015 21:58:51 GMT
A faint wave of amusement seemed to roll off of Bane, and he took a few steps out into the snow as he shook his wings out. 'Do not worry. I am far more sensible than Dynas is." "Hey, fuck off." 'You know it is true.' "... Yeah." The dragon shook his head, flapped a couple of times, then took off at a run, wings outstretched and beating furiously until he was able to hurl himself into the sky. It wasn't the most stable of takeoffs, but once he was up in the air the flight was fairly smooth. The wind was freezing, and Dynas swore as a gust blew snow into his face, but he doubted that would bother Stark too much. Bane tucked his legs up against his body and turned towards the south, determined to get back to warmer lands as quickly as possible.
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Post by Behax on Jun 26, 2015 22:32:45 GMT
Stark jolted when he heard the voice in his head, a voice that was very much not his. It didn't belong there and he was sure he didn't like that either. He decided not to interject into this conversation, he was just trying to deal with....Or ignore rather, the unfamiliar voice in his head. He braced himself when Bane stretchered his wings, it was both amazing to watch and frightening. It was a good thing that Dragons were a natural magic dampener, otherwise Dynas would have to worry about more then just getting snow in his face. An anxious Stark was not particularly good to be around, and as Bane took off his anxiety started to go through the roof. He tried just looking straight ahead, but eventually found he had to close his eyes completely. His hands gripping tightly at the saddle.
The cold didn't bother him, but then the air around him was starting to freeze anyway, though because of his extremely close proximity to Bane, it was no where near as bad as it had been in the cave the previous night.
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Post by kaidashade on Jun 26, 2015 22:40:56 GMT
Dynas did notice that it had gotten substantially colder, but didn't say anything until their flight had levelled and Bane settled into a comfortable glide. That was much smoother, the dragon's streamlined body cutting through the air with apparent ease. "Don't look down." The Rider remarked, his voice a low, calm rumble, "if yer nervous. But just look out at the sky, the horizon, 's beautiful up here. Last thing yer gonna do is fall."
It was pretty beautiful, even he could admit that, and he hated the cold. The sky met mountains in the distance, pale blue against pure white and occasional streaks of deep grey rock, a couple of birds wheeling against the sky. One even flitted past them, white feathers making it hard to spot until it moved and twittered in alarm when it realised just how big the creature it was sharing the sky with was. Bane seemed unbothered, even when another bird landed on him to hitch a ride.
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Post by Behax on Jun 28, 2015 19:40:43 GMT
It was no where near as bad as it could be, Bane was dampening out the worst of Stark's power and with little no ill effect on the elf himself. It was a little better once the dragon's flying levelled out, and no longer had the roughness of take off. "I'd rather not look anywhere if it's all the same," Stark replied, keeping his eyes shut. He could feel the cold air wiping at his hair and clothes, it was older up here than on the mountain side, but none of that bothered Stark very much.
His grip on the saddle with his legs and hands remained tight, and it was a while until he even dared to open one eye a crack. Not until he could hear the sound of twittering birds in the hair. It was short lived, as their close proximity to the clouds had him shutting his eyes tight again. As smooth as the ride had become, Stark really preferred having his feet on the ground.
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Post by kaidashade on Jun 28, 2015 19:45:21 GMT
Flying wasn't for everyone, Dynas supposed. He shared his dragon's elation in the freedom of the sky, the security of his strength, so he'd never been afraid of falling. Still, they were aloft for hours, until eventually the air started to warm a little and the sun started to dip towards the horizon. Dynas was used to it, but no doubt Stark's legs would be aching by the time they found a small town and touched down in the dark, Bane letting loose a fireball from his maw to light his landing and make sure he didn't crush anything. He laid down and Dynas unstrapped himself, dropping to the ground and reaching a hand up to help the elf out. They'd attracted a bit of a crowd, but most seemed curious rather than hostile.
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Post by Behax on Jun 28, 2015 20:01:16 GMT
Freedom to Stark while not an entirely foreign concept, always came with a set of conditions. He was free as long as he kept to himself, and far away from other people. Or had been mostly, until Dynas decided to track him all the way up that god forsaken mountain. For most of their time in the air, Stark tried not to think much at all. He did seem to relax after a while, when nothing disastrous happened, the air around him becoming warmer.
By the time they landed it wasn't just Stark's legs which were aching, the rest of him felt rather stiff, he was exhausted. He'd could spend a whole day hunting and hiking, and wouldn't be as tired as he was now. But then he'd spent most of the time in the air stressed, with his power just leaking out and draining him constantly. His markings were supposed to stop him losing control, they did nothing to actually help him.
The crowd actually made Stark reluctant to get down. Large groups of people made him nervous. While he had spent some time in villages and towns occasionally, he usually kept to himself and didn't stay long. He let Dynas help him down, wobbling a bit once he was finally back on his feet. His legs felt like jelly.
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Post by kaidashade on Jun 28, 2015 20:03:42 GMT
The Rider held on to him for a bit until he was sure he wasn't going to keel over. "Yeah, you'll get yer sky legs eventually, just try not ta fall on yer face, alright?" He said. Yeah, he totally remembered what that was like, and he'd seen dozens of people do it afte rgetting down from a dragon. "C'mon, we'll find the inn 'n' I'll grab us a room fer the night. Or two, if ya promise ya won't run off in the night." He turned and headed off up the town's main street, Bane following behind him at a sedate walk. It was remarkable really, how quickly a crowd would part for a thirty foot long death lizard.
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Post by Behax on Jun 28, 2015 20:12:08 GMT
His first few steps were shaky, and even he wasn't sure if he was going to go face first into the shallow snow. He seemed to get the hang of walking again, though still wobbly, but more stable. He pulled his hood up, the stares of the crowd made him nervous, and he wasn't how far south they'd come. He didn't want to be recognised even by chance. "Even if my plan was to run, I don't think I'll be doing any such thing any time soon." Dynas said you got used to flying, Stark wasn't sure how....He supposed over time you just built up the right kind of muscle. He followed close to Bane as he walked down the towns main street. While he didn't look around much, he did just enough to take in the town's appearance.
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Post by kaidashade on Jun 28, 2015 20:24:59 GMT
It was a pretty quiet sort of place, but the dragon didn't draw a huge amount of attention. Riders going north stopped here often,and though the dragon was a curiosity he certainly wasn't a novelty. "Yeah, 's pretty harsh on the legs. But it gets better. Ya get stronger pretty quick." Dynas explained, picking his way through the streets until he found the inn, which had a courtyard out front more than big enough for a dragon to curl up in. "I dunno about you, but I could use some food 'n' a drink." He said, pausing and resting his hand on Bane's lowered snout for a moment before heading inside. Clearly something had been said, because the dragon rolled his eyes and laid down, head on his paws.
Dynas paused at the door. "Comin'? Bane's pretty warm ta sit on if ya don't wanna deal with the crowds."
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Post by Behax on Jun 28, 2015 20:35:01 GMT
Stark followed Bane through the streets, not close behind, but not far either. He still didn't trust the man, but he didn't trust the darkening streets of the unfamiliar town either. He wondered if Dynas had been here before, he seemed to have an idea about where he was going at least. He hadn't thought about how hungry he was until Dynas mentioned food. "Now that you mention it, I am rather hungry," he said though still paused in the light spilling from the now open door. He looked to the dragon as if weighing up his choice before turning and following Dynas inside. He'd had enough of sitting on a giant lizard for one day, he'd take his chances inside.
Stepping over the threshold he felt the warm air wash over him. While the cold didn't bother Stark as much as most people, he still preferred the warm.
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Post by kaidashade on Jun 28, 2015 20:40:59 GMT
Dynas waited for him for a moment before making a beeline for the bar. "Any rooms free?" He asked the innkeeper who was, stereotypically, polishing a glass behind it. "Just you?" "Me 'n' the elf." He jerked his head towards Stark as he came in behind him, "Separate beds, before ya get any ideas." He added "That'll be fine. Anything else?" "Whatever food's goin', 'n' a glass a the cheapest, nastiest shit ya've got that won't blind me."
He sat down at the bar as the man nodded and headed off to get that for them. As Stark approached, he pulled a chair out for him, too. "This place ain't too bad, if I remember rightly. Food's good, women're friendly if yer decent to 'em. Men ain't bad either, come ta that."
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Post by Behax on Jun 28, 2015 20:55:12 GMT
Stark let the door swing closed behind him, and glanced around the floor. There weren't very many people around thankfully, or at least the place wasn't packed out. Wrong time of year for many travellers he suspected. He let Dynas take care of all the talking, following him to a table once he was done. "Thanks," he said as the man pulled a chair out for him, he sat down a lowered his hood, though doing so even in a not particularly crowded room made him a bit nervous, though not yet enough for him to start affecting the temperature.
"I'll take your word for it," he said leaning back in his chair and flushing a bit at Dynas' last comment.
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Post by kaidashade on Jun 28, 2015 21:01:15 GMT
Dynas eyed him, a teasing smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. "I guess yer a bit young ta be partakin' a that sorta thing. Lucky fer you I ain't the kind ta bring someone in when I'm sharin' the room. That's just fuckin' rude." Sounded like he'd had someone do that to him before, though his response had been somewhere along th e lines of 'either invite me to join in or get the fuck out'. He suspected Stark wo uld be less blunt.
Soon enough food and drink were delivered to them, whatever was in Dynas' glass strong enough to be smelled and quite probably make the eyes water from across the table, and he knocked it back with a grimace. "Fuck, that really is awful." He said, taking a swig from the pitcher of water that had been left.
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Post by Behax on Jun 28, 2015 21:13:07 GMT
The flush on his face deepened a bit, and his brow furrowed, he was young...He wasn't that young. Though Dynas wouldn't be far off in thinking he didn't have any experience, but then how much experience did anyone expected someone who was basically a recluse to get in the first place? He avoided populated places, and never stayed in them long. He had seen people he liked, but the thought had always passed quickly. He was dangerous, he shouldn't be around people and they shouldn't be around him him. Stark was more likely to get flustered if someone did that to him, and it would be marked by a remarkably sudden drop in the temperature. His powers didn't just react to his anxiety or anger, any strong emotions could in theory set them off.
He was thankful when their food arrived, not just because he was hungry, but because it would hopefully get them away from this awkward subject of conversation. Not that it was even much of a conversation. He started eating his meal even as Dynas knocked back....Whatever the hell that was. Stark had no intention to find out how awful it tasted, he already knew how awful it smelt. He half expected Dynas to drop down dead, but he supposed the guy probably had an iron stomach. He stuck to water.
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