The Soul of a Dragon

[Monkey Monk]

Caliga sighed as he saw the reaction within Misty that
he had received from everyone else. In truth, he was
not a half-blood, for he had not been born this way.
Yet he was ignorant of such facts due to his amnesia.
It was thus that he assumed he had been this way for
his whole life. However, the way he was so rapidly
changing into something else caused him to question
whether such assumptions were right on occasion.
Whatever he had been in the past, whatever he had
done for a living, he felt that if he had not been born
this way that this must be some sort of punishment.
Punishment for what though?

His mind was brought from the realm of thought and
self-assessment when they others began to stride
away. Slowly he followed after them, his black boots
falling on the stone of the ground. When their
procession paused, he followed suit. His ears listened
intently as the others gave forth their names one by
one. When it became apparent that it was his turn, he
let his voice ring out into the earlier night air. "My name
is Caliga, or so I have been entitled.." This name was
not his true one, he knew that for a fact. It had been
given to him by an old man before he entered the city.
The meaning had been told to him as well: darkness.

[Felypsa]

Misty, a hopeless romantic at heart, thought Richard was rather handsome-looking, but really only admired him for his apparent musical ability, which she coveted in every such talented person. But she knew, realistically, she would be wasting her time pursuing him…she was just happy to have both him and Zerlina perform at her father’s inn. Once everyone had introduced themselves, she said, “It’s so nice to meet you all!” Then, without further ado, she led them into The Rising Dragon.

Her father was at the bar, and to Misty’s disappointment there were very few people in the tavern. The Rising Dragon was well lit with softly glowing candelabras and gaslit lamps on the ceiling. Next to the bar was the upright piano, which Misty hoped was in tune, though it had been some time since anyone played on it. There was some space for both Richard to sit at the piano and for Zerlina to stand near him. They would be facing their audience, the tables opposite the bar, only two or three of which were actually occupied.

The moment her father saw her, he waved to her to bring some dishes from the kitchen to their sparse customers. Misty waved back, then pointed to the piano. “You can go there, and begin whenever you like,” she said quickly. “I hope you have everything you need.” She was about to run off to the kitchen when she belated remembered Caliga. She motioned to the empty tables and seats at the bar and said, “Sit wherever you want. Can I get you anything?” She addressed her question to all three members of the party, not just Caliga. She lingered, eager to please, near them.

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[Mama Z]

Eager green eyes looked around, sizing up the walls, furniture, the different color liquor that decorated the walls, each seeming to let off its own light as it with the candles in the area, the man at the bar, whom she presumed was the owner the way he ordered Misty right to work, then to the sparse crowd. She couldnt help but frown, it was such a small group. Hands clutched the hard-cover of her case, hopefully her and Richards song will bring some more people to the otherwise comfortable inn. She looked over at the small stage area where the preformance would commence. It was cute, like some of the stages she had preformed on in her past life.

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Richards own eyes were looking over the tavern/inn. It gave off a cozy feeling and if he had known about it sooner, he would have come here when he visted the town. He was looking at the piano and had to frown at the amount of dust that had collected on the instrument, and like Misty, he was hoping it was at least slightly intune. When offered anything he requested one simple thing, 'A rag.' He needed to get that dust off the keys, it would drive him nuts either wise.

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[Monkey Monk]

Caliga nodded as he was offered any seat he liked.
Slowly he went to a table in the corner, shaking his
head when asked if he wanted anything. Once in the
shadows of the corner, he seemed to relax finally. The
cozy light of the room did not touch him, for he had
chosen one of the few places that was not well lit. He
did this for one main reason, so as to not scare off
customers. The knowledge that they needed
entertainers so as to attract patrons. It would not due
to have him, a half-blood, right in plain sight.

So it was thus that he remained silent in his corner. He
watched the goings on of the others. Yet the skin
about the scales on his cheek began to itch. He lifted
his hand to scratch at the irritated area. Soon he found
relief from the minor nuisance. Yet when he drew his
fingers away, large quantities of skin pulled away as
well. Quickly he brought up his hand to wipe at the
area, pulling of the rest of the skin in the process.
Where the flesh had been moments before there were
not more of those pale blue scales. A sigh passed his
lips as it seemed that the change had spread several
inches across his face.

[Felypsa]

“A rag? Gladly, just a moment,” Misty replied cheerily, hurrying off to the kitchen. There she found a couple of plates of food waiting to be taken out, but luckily they hadn’t been left out so long as to have cooled. She whisked them up and grabbed a fresh kitchen cloth from one of the cupboards, then hurried out, having no trouble balancing the platters. She delivered the meal to those who had ordered it from her earlier, then proudly presented the cloth to Richard. She murmured excitedly, “Thank you so much!” She was aware of her father watching her interestedly, wondering who these people were whom she brought into their inn. She grinned, confident that these visitors would play fantastic music, which she was really looking forward to.

As she hurried back to the kitchen to perform other mundance duties, she passed Caliga in his dark corner. She wanted to ignore him, but she could not help but toss a glance at him. What she saw made her recoil in horror. Some skin had peeled off his face, and he was acting as if nothing were wrong. Worse, the skin was replaced by blue scales. She could not suppress a shudder. She wondered if he was in some pain, and, with misunderstanding pity, asked, “Gods above, are you alright? You look awful! Are you sure you don’t me to get you, a, um…” She stared at his partially-scaled face and shivered again. She honestly had no idea what could possibly help with that. She finished lamely with, “…a bandage?” Oh, gods, what is this creature I have invited under my roof? she lamented silently.

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[Mama Z]

Richard took the rag with a small thank you. He folded it gently in four and moved towards the piano. Delicately as not to press all the keys down at once and make a horrid noise, began to clean them. It wasnt long before the white and black could be seen, instead of an off yellow and musty black. He worked quietly, savoring the moment, it had been ages since had touched a piano, not since he was a lad in this body and when he died in his last body. Blue eyes glanced up when he saw Lina coming towards him. 'Hopefully I know how to play.' He mused gently looking back out at the crowd, then towrads where Misty and Caliga was.

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'Im more worried about Caliga,' She responded softly, droping her voice below a whisper. 'Ive never seen a transformation so..' She trailed off, not really knowing how to express it. It was odd, horrid, quick and yet facinating. She sighed, setting the case down on the stool for the piano and gingerly opened it. The lining was a brillant red, and the fabric itself was velvet. The flute was divided into three sections and the silver (yet some keys were gold as well as the mouth piece) of it stood out greatly. Before she began to assemble it she took off her cloak, setting it to the side. She guessed from Richards silence there wasnt much they could do about that now.

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[Monkey Monk]

Caliga jumped slightly as he heard the one who had so
graciously accepted him into her home exclaimed out.
Quickly he dropped the skin onto the table and wiped
the blood from his new scales. When she asked if she
could get him anything, he nodded his head slowly. "I
would like a glass of water and a towel please..." He
remained tense as it seemed many of the patrons and
those within the area were staring at him. Slowly he
sank into the folds of his fur coat, not liking the
attention he was receiving. Ever since he had awoke
atop that mountain, he had found himself more and
more not liking attention. It made him feel bare, all
those eyes upon him.

As he waited for the desired objects, he continued to
try and become one with the shadows. It was then a
question formed in his mind. One that he asked himself
numerous times. Why was it that impure creatures
such as himself were treated so horribly within the
confines of this city? Even the one who had offered him
a place to stay in return for labor seemed to detest
him. What had he done to deserve such a punishment?
Was anyone truly deserving of such a coldness as
exile? Even murders had their own kind to be among.
Who did he have? He had not seen another who even
slightly resembled what he was or what he thought he
was to become. He was truly alone.

[Felypsa]

Misty nodded quickly and half-ran into the kitchen to fetch the items Caliga requested. He’s so frightful-looking, she thought with another shudder once she was in the warm, familiar kitchen. What is he? He looks like he’s going to become a monster and attack everyone…well, if he does, I’ll just have to retract my offer. Being generous is all well and good, but I draw the line when the customer starts killing people. With her firm resolve, she poured him a glass of cold water and grabbed a towel off the rack (it was not a fresh, clean cloth like the one she handed Richard, but she made sure it was not very dirty at least), and hurried back into the room. She half-threw the towel at Caliga, not wanting to get too close to him lest he suddenly attack her, and set the glass of water on the edge of the table. “Here you go,” she said with attempted cheerfulness, but hastily left his little area.

She had more work to do—dishes to wash, tables to clean—but she could see that Lina and Richard were about to start. That increased her haste; she wanted to sit and enjoy their music, for she was positive it would astounding. She had a simple but unwavering faith in the abilities of musicians. But in her haste, she knocked a candle off a table that was next to Caliga’s. Transfixed in horror, she watched the little flame fall towards the wooden foundation, passing very close to Caliga. Time seemed to freeze; the lit candle seemed suspended. Misty closed her eyes, bracing herself for the fiery impact, but otherwise could not move.

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[Mama Z]

Richard finally moved to the piano bench, and with a quick couple of swipes, cleared it free of teh thin line of dirt, expect where Lina had rested her case, there it would be a nice square. He pulled the bench closer to the large percussion (or string depending on where you want to place it) instrument. Delicate fingers rested on the keys but not yet pressing them down. He heard murmurs in the audience but ignored them. He was actually hearing the music that was about to be played, counting measures and beats. Watching his fingers move on their own accord, like a psychic moving her hands over tarrot cards. SHoe-clad feet were moving up and down on the pedals, testing their stiffness and already he could feel them loosening up.

He smiled lightly, this brought back old old memories. Finally the snap of Linas case caused him to look over at her, but in the corner of his eye he caught sight of the little flame, seeming to jump off the table. But with the way human senses were it would take a couple of moment for it to register that the candle had actually fallen, and had a collision course with the floor.

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Lina, unlike her brother, had kept up with all forms of music on all forms of instruments. Music was her passion, and the only thing that stayed constant with time. It helped her remember who she orignally could have been. Singing though, was something she wasn't very good at, considering the fact that it took a unique body and set of vocal chords, which fate decided was only a treat every couple of births. She worked quickly nad quietly connecting the mouth piece to the body of the flute and the foot to the body. Fingers shifted the instrument to rest on the keys.

She put the instrument ot her lips for a moment, paused, took it away and readjusted it. Finally she reached forward, closing ehr case and smiling. Richard needs this, she thought as he looked at her then away towards teh audience. She guessed they were waiting for Misty to have a seat.

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[Monkey Monk]

Indeed Caliga suffered the same slowing of time as the
candle fell. He knew that is such a flame were to
contact with the floor, it would not prove to be all that
good for the others' performance. So calmly he shot his
hand out and grabbed the candle. Yet no matter how
tranquil and calm his movements had seemed to
himself, to the others it would seem as if he was
moving with inhuman quickness. A bit of hot wax
dripped onto his finger, yet he ignored the minor
stinging for a moment. Gently he sat the candle on
table and peeled the rapidly cooling wax from his flesh.
For a moment he let his marvelous eyes scan the room.

Quite suddenly his gaze fell on Misty. He seemed to
sense her uneasiness about her. It stressed him out
slightly, to see the one who had been so kind to him
not treat him like a monster. A small smile formed
across his lips as he bowed his head. "Thank you." He
was indeed talking about the glass of water and the
rag. Lightly he let the cloth sink into the cool liquid and
absorb such water into the threads that composed the
towel. As soon as the cloth was sufficiently damp, he
went about cleaning up his new scales. His demeanor
was like one washing their face before bed. As soon as
the deed was done, he leaned back in his seat and
waited for the music to commence.

[Felypsa]

Misty held her breath and cracked open one eye when she realized there was not yet a fiery inferno burning down her father's inn. To her surprise, she saw Caliga calmly put the candle back where it was. Her eyes widened in amazement; she was sure the candle was going to crash onto the floor. He must have been as swift as lightning to save it! she thought. Numbly, she realized that Caliga had thanked her for the water and cloth, but it was so strangely out of context that she blinked. "Thank me?" she asked incredulously. "Thank you! I don't know how you did that, but you saved...well, you saved me from a beating, and you probably saved the whole tavern from being burnt to a crisp! Thanks to my clumsiness," she muttered under her breath, mentally berating herself for being so klutzy. She got lucky this time, but next time, there probably wouldn't be a superfast Caliga to save everything!

With a look of appreciation, Misty sat at the table next to Caliga. He still creeped her out, and she tried not to look at his peeling skin and revealed scales, but she was grateful for his help. Relieved and putting the incident out of mind, she turned her attention to her musicians, eagerly anticipating their music.

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[Mama Z]

The young man let out his own breath and let out a deep sigh. That was close, Caliga was quick that was for sure. HE looked over at Lina who had a quircked brow and he just shook his head. Turning back to the piano, his hands found their possesions and without further waiting began to press the keys.

The beginning of the song started with a small crescendo, the scale moving quick and with great ease. Lightly the notes began to take form, echoing throughout the small dining hall with a gracefullness that only a certain few could posses. This particular song was soft, like a mothers lullabye late at night when her child had just had a nightmare. Each note was deep and would soon interact beautifully with the high notes of the flute.

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The woman didnt have time to question what had so startled her brother as he had already started playing. She frowned and gently shook her head, and turned back to the audience. She closed her eyes, listening to the music and counting silently. Soon the cold metal of the flute was pressed up against painted lips.

The flutes counter melody started out soft as well, eventually workign its way up to the same pitch as the pianos. The notes had started out in a lower octave but were now at a higher registar then that of its partner. Now, the song sounded more like a choir of angels, singing to sleep the world.

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[Monkey Monk]

The hair on the back of Caliga's neck bristled. Misty's
outburst had attracted the attention of a few of the
sparse patrons toward him once more. As was in the
last instance, he pressed himself closer to the
shadows. His voice came out in a low, pleading
whisper. "Really...it was nothing." Yet the attentions of
the others seemed to have been drawn away at the
beginning of the music. He let himself relax once more
into his seat. Against he began to dab the cool, moist
rag over his newly formed scales. They burned slightly
and were soft. Yet he had experienced these minor
changes enough to know that by morning his new
flesh would be diamond-hard.

The soothing notes of the song began to cause him to
experience a feeling that had been long dormant from
Caliga's mind. His eyes slowly shut as he let the music
lull him. A feeling of calmness actually began to course
throughout his figure. With the relaxed state of his
facial features and his slow breathing, he no longer
looked like a monstrosity. In fact he looked rather
pitiful. If one pushed aside the hideousness of his
changes, they might take note of the morbidness of his
situation. Too often did he receive reactions like
Misty's. And despite how he looked and what he was
becoming, he was still human.

[Felypsa]

Once the music started, Misty forgot about Caliga and lost herself in the melodies. She was right; Richard and Zerlina were phenomenal musicians, especially together. It was a beautiful duet. The girl closed her eyes and drifted away with the music, which was like that of an angelic chorus. Her muscles were tired, but they were relaxed as soon as the music washed over her. It was hard not to fall asleep, not because the music was so boring, but because it was so lulling.

Maybe Misty did fall asleep. Or maybe she had just fallen into a trance, enchanted by the extraordinary music of the two siblings. Whatever it was, she had certainly forgotten about her mundane kitchen duties, had forgotten about her urge to see more customers come to The Rising Dragon (there surely were, as the music floated outside and lured people to the inn like flies to honey), had even forgotten about the frightfulness of the half-blood sitting near her. She had vanished into bliss.

She dreamed that she was weaving. She had not woven anything for so long! She eagerly took the colorful threads on the loom and began spinning them. She was not sure what she was creating; the threads seemed to have a mind of their own. She spun them and spun them, watching as something beautiful formed before her very eyes, her fingers unstoppable on the loom. She must have looked ridiculous in real life, sitting back in her chair, eyes closed, her fingers rapidly moving through the air. Unnoticed by her, the ring she always wore—the silver ring with three emeralds—began to glow softly, so unobtrusively that it was likely no one else noticed it. Misty certainly didn’t.

The music certainly had a strange effect on her. Once it would finish, however, Misty would snap out of her trance, without a single memory of her dream or of even falling asleep.

[ame]

A fox like creature walked the streets that night. His milky white eyes reflected all he had seen. People always gave him double glances and this time was no exception. With his hood thrown back you could clearly see his white, foxen head, his large ears perked up. Two swords stuck out from beneath his cloak at his side for he kept his allies at his side. As he passed by a tavern he faintly heard beautiful music from inside. 'Maybe, I'll check it out,' he thought as he pulled up his hood, 'but what about these tails?'

Ooc:I don't normally roleplay as myself so I'm hiding in a different form. Out.