ah to be young again // AE visitors

[wuyi]

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Wuyi stared at a pitcher plant, mouth wide. But nobody would be able to see that, since a large white sheet covered the cub from head to paws. Two holes exposed xyr grey eyes, and xyr wings popped out of two rips in the fabric over his back. The feathered wings fluttered, and he rose off the wet soil.

Wuyi’d only seen carnivorous plants in xyr encyclopedia. However, xe thought the book said they only grew large enough to eat insects. This one looked big enough to drown xemself in! “Cool,” Wuyi whispered. Xe dragged a paw over the plant’s sticky ‘lips’ and wondered if it was safe to poke xyr head in for a quick look.

Then Wuyi remembered why xe and Bai Shi came to this island. And it certainly wasn’t to look at strange plants all day, even if Wuyi found them fascinating. So xe pulled xemself away from the plant with a sigh and landed on Bai Shi. That brightened Wuyi up immediately, because now xe was tall!

“Hello!” Wuyi sat back and cupped xyr paws around xyr mouth to amplify the sound. “We’re from Alithís Evgenis, and Bai Shi would like to speak to Stryker! Bai Shi’s our leader—and a nice one. My name’s Wuyi! I hope we can be friends!”

[SirDio]

STHENO

The scaled and furred body moved gently among the foliage, searching, hunting. What she didn't expect was the voice of a child. A low 'hmm' rumbled from her throat as she moved to the source of the voice. Wait, did this kid look familiar, or was she just really, really tired? They had to be familiar. Clearing her throat, she spoke gently, "Hello - welcome to the island. Snake ba - I mean, Stryker will most likely be here shortly. What do they need to talk about, if I'm allowed to ask?"

[Stryker]

⸺ STRYKER, THE KINGPIN ⸺

pleasing everyone isn't like you, dancing jigs until i'm crippled

This one again? Stryker wasn't very fond of letting the little ones roam, but if their neighbor wanted to do so, then so be it. The lion wandered up after Stheno, merely missing her comment about being a presumed 'snake bastard.' Guess that was karma though. He thought she was a snake bitch. Next time he'd have to feed her to the carnivorous plants or to [member=2879]GHOST[/member] ... Luckily, the Kingpin hadn't heard her and offered the hybrid a stern nod in greeting, only to shift his attention over to Wuyi moments later.

No wonder they were here. Bai Shi wanted to 'talk.' "I see," he commented. "I look forward to seeing him then, Wuyi." A small laugh exited him. Hopefully the two leaders came to an agreement on their alliance, seeing that their last discussion did cut a bit short.

"TALKING"

[CAESAR CIPHER.]

[glow=black,1,400]THESE FUCKING PEOPLE ALWAYS SAY THE SAME OLD THING ! — ｡+ﾟ.[/glow]

"And I hope you shut the fuck up." Caesar grumbled as he came to stand next to Stryker, glaring at Wuyi as he came over. His words were clear and sharp, with him not afraid to speak his mind. He cast a glance over at Stryker though, as if trying to ask why he was giving this group a chance.[glow=COLOR,1,400] ━ ✧*:･ﾟ[/glow]

[rhosmari]

Like a living breathing nightmare the feral behemoth had taken to following Stheno around the island. But at a distance, watching and learning how the other reacted to the world. They were to him, not a threat but also not prey as the lion was or a threat like the three animals that had attacked him were. His salmon red orbs bore into the snake hybrid with interest but his tail was held high and his wings slightly stretched out as he watched the strangers that they were talking too. The instinct to attack passed forth and his jaws parted on a low and aggressive purr, eyes locking on the ones that had come here. These were strange creatures within his territory and he didn't taken kindly to this. So he could for the moment ignore the lion, he could ignore the oddity of bright yellow for these. His sickle like claws flexed and he moved his massive figure forward, jaws parting and suddenly he snapped them forward, demanding their submission for being here. The ghastly white raptor hybrid pulled his lips back to reveal large teeth, heavy tail balancing him to keep him ready to leap upon his prey.
"SPEECH"

[SirDio]

STHENO

Ears flicking toward Stryker in greeting, she kept her eyes ahead. Her tongue flicked out and then drawled back in as Piss-Cat entered the scene. Her face hardened with his words, and she had half the mind to kick him in the side. But she simply spoke, poison on her words, "Just this once, Caesar, please keep your mouth shut." She then left him devoid of attention. There was no reason to give him that attention, but she did so anyway. And then...

Ghost arrived, a purr of aggression coming from him. He really did not like trying to make friends. Stheno understood that much - she wasn't one for friendliness either. But senseless violence still wasn't needed, so she stepped up next to Ghost and let out a soft laugh. "It would be of your best interest to be submissive. Any and all signs of aggression will be met with accordingly." She mainly addressed Bai with her words, but definitely wasn't leaving Wuyi out.

[teef]

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THE KINGPIN

golden lung dragon & black jaguar w/ vitiligo & platinum silver fox. god of war - ancient. bai shi lynn lingré. proper chinese name is lin bai. prefers lynn if close. they/them. formerly blind. wind element & electric element. firstborn son of jerisidie lingré & current head of family. courting halo mercer. kingpin of alithís evgenis. demiromantic gray-asexual. parent of veris, arvin, leoku, erian, flos, kekhai, evarhi, laeglin, sloan and colwyn. elder brother of ramona and hope, uncle of quennel and cosette. (strike is deceased/unknown status)

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deep rumble left the dragon as they pushed their way through, tracking their ward by scent. Their legs had been giving them trouble as of late, new wounds reopening after the recent scrapping with bandits and using their body to uphold a collapsed tunnel. Exhaustion on their face, the kingpin rumbled as they trailed after the child, barely keeping xyr within eyesight. Taking a corner, they finally caught up, aware of silver blood leaking down their legs, tracing their scales, angry scarring covering their shoulders and throat, scars jagged and rough over their eyes. Orbs of bright sapphire glowed, lightning racing through their veins. They weren't afraid of what would happen o them should they lose their ward, they were a bloody leader, they were afraid of what would happen to their ward should they lose them. "wuyi. Come here.", there was the smallest amount of heat in their voice, gaze fixed on the carnivorous plants the cub had been touching before. Gods help them, they didnt like the look of that, "don't touch strange things without knowing what they are, please, little one.". The jungle was harder to travel in this body, but anything was hard pressed to want to eat them in this body, and scales gave more protection than fur. A low growl escaped them, assessing their surroundings and the individuals there. From the pot and into the frying pan, truly.

Locking their eyes on Stryker, they flicked an ear, "I'm here to discuss our allegiance, and more. I come with an invitation today, and a suggestion of opening a trade route, kingpin to kingpin.", they spoke to him directly, ignoring Stheno for the time being. Thank gods they were nearly at the end of their journey between territories. What hell this was becoming.

Turning their attention to Stheno, they laughed, "I do not fear a sharp bite. We are here for business outside of violence. If you crave a show, I would be happy to play with you later.", they chuffed, hard gaze passing over Ghost and Caesar who they chose to ignore. Crude mouth on that one. "wuyi, if you speak like that yellow cat there, I will personally wash your mouth out with soap.", they spoke to their ward sternly, hoping against hope the child would stay on their shoulders, or better yet, climb up between their antlers. Should they need to rear up, the youth would be well out of danger's immediate range. "If your pet makes a move on me or my ward, I will not hesitate to respond.", they spoke to Stryker once again, "Though they will find that I am not one that they should be keen to fight with.", they warned, gaze flicking back to the raptor hybrid and Stheno, curious yet intrigued. They could feel the lightning sliding along their throat, sparking in their saliva, the call of violence never far from the surface in them. Shaking their mane, they nodded to Stryker, waiting for his reaction after their classy late arrival.

(I totally slipped the boot on this one. Looked through my threads and realized I hadn't posted here akskdnfn. My bad lmao) //

[wuyi]

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After Bai Shi’s chiding, Wuyi sunk into the lung dragon’s fluff. The white sheet slipped over xyr eyes, and the cub struggled to pull it off xyr head. Unable to see what was happening, the kid’s ears twitched as xe listened to the conversation. Besides, this was diplomatic stuff, boring leader things. Xe didn’t need to see any of it… right?

“The yellow one’s mean… I don’t want to talk like that,” Wuyi mumbled. Xe rested xyr chin on Bai Shi’s shoulder.

Wuyi stiffened when xe heard the stomping and snapping jaws of a large creature. Xe pawed at the sheet covering xyr eyes again, trying to see, and finally succeeded in pulling the whole thing off. Then the child froze, blinking at the giant reptile-like creature. Xe glanced to Stheno and Stryker, trying to understand the giant animal’s strange behavior.

“You… mean like a game?” xe asked Stheno, shivering against Bai Shi’s neck. “That’s not a fun game at all.”

Remembering what Bai Shi told xem earlier, about the safest place to be should anything attack, Wuyi unfurled xyr wings. Half-climbing, xe fluttered up to Bai Shi’s head, wrapping vis front arms around one of their horns. Xe hunkered in their mane, trying to hide in the long fur.

[SirDio]

STHENO

Oh, how the hybrid inwardly cringed at their laugh. Her expression never changed, but a simple tail flick that left a dust cloud was enough to show her annoyance. "I don't like shows of any kind, gold dragon." words coated in a hidden fury. But a huff left her body and she nuzzled up against Ghost. "Relax, dear beast. Once they've has their talk, they will leave." words of soft silk. Eyes staring at Wuyi, tongue flicking in a threatening manner.Then anger flashed in those silver eyes of hers, and the fur on her back bristled. No. She had to stay calm. Or at least look calm.

"They are not my pet, nor are they a pet under any coalition member." words coated in sly fury.

[teef]

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THE KINGPIN

golden lung dragon & black jaguar w/ vitiligo & platinum silver fox. god of war - ancient. bai shi lynn lingré. proper chinese name is lin bai. prefers lynn if close. they/them. formerly blind. wind element & electric element. firstborn son of jerisidie lingré & current head of family. courting halo mercer. kingpin of alithís evgenis. demiromantic gray-asexual. parent of veris, arvin, leoku, erian, flos, kekhai, evarhi, laeglin, sloan and colwyn. elder brother of ramona and hope, uncle of quennel and cosette. (strike is deceased/unknown status)

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they rumbled silently as they felt wuyi climb up their head, gaze cutting over the individuals there, "good, wuyi. it has a foul mouth, that one.", they spoke softly, eyes lingering on caesar with a low rumble before moving on, turning their head back to stheno, "i should like to leave these lands without incident, or we all may find ourselves in dire straits", they murmured, the kingpin's visage stony yet remaining the tired dark circles below their eyes. they had many better things to be doing apart from standing here, relief filling them at the weight of wuyi above the ground, safe from the immediate threat of everyone else upon the ground. grumbling slightly, they sighed, turning their gaze away from ghost for a moment, not trusting the beast.

exhaling, they held stryker's gaze, "we bring news of a bonfire we are holding within our lands, and we plan to invite those who wish to come to such an occasion.", they would tell him, speaking to the rest of the group as well, "threats will not be permitted in such a place, aiming to celebrate even with those who would rather take our heads from our corpses. one such, we both know.", they would rumble, aiming the last words to stryker, speaking of a certain captain that both knew of.