Is tiny dragon still a dragon? (closed)

[twin_blade]

WHO: Vax'ildan Vessar twin_blade & Dion Lesage oblige
WHEN: Post-fog event
WHERE: Charronway
WHAT: It's time to mini-prime.
NOTES\WARNINGS: None.



[ Vax might have a place to rest his head at night, but he doesn't actually spend a lot of time at the apartments. Having been in Etraya for a year, one would think he would have found a more comfortable place to call home, but this place is not and never will be his home. In short, he hasn't bothered to try.

Instead, he likes to be out as much as possible. Exploring different areas. Learning the ins and outs of the world and getting a lay of the land. When he's not traveling, he likes quiet spots away from it all. Anything that remotely reminds him of home. The lakeside is one of those places he enjoys.

He sits on a log near the water's edge, absently rubbing a smooth pebble between his fingers as he watches a single bird glide over the surface of the water. It's here that he waits for company from someone who contacted him for a meeting. Until then, he lets himself get lost in the sound of the wind in the trees and tiny laps of the water on the rocky bank. It won't be difficult for his elven ears to pick up the approach of anyone coming to find him. ]

Comments

[twin_blade]

[ The soft rumbling is cute. Vax never thought he'd find a dragon cute, but Bahamut is presently so small, he looks more like a decoration than a threat.

Vax nods a few times as Dion talks about scales. Yes, he knows how tough it can be to penetrate them. ]

Sure. It's easy to find the joints in a man's armor. Dragon scales are harder to get between. The first one we fought had a weakness we learned of through an old book.

[ Vax moves his finger, brow furrowing in focus as his finger lightly touches Bahamut's throat, then traces down to a point at the crest of his chest where the neck meets. He remembers Brimscythe's lightning and how it shone a light that came to a point on his body. ]

It was here. The second dragon had no such weakness in its scales, though.

[oblige]

[ Bahamut perks up at that, wings lifting with the emthusiasm of his reaction— ]

So there is literature!

[ On the subject of dragons, that is.

Though not enough, evidently. His excitement for this small revelation sobers as he considers how fortunate it was that they'd found the right book in such a case. Glowing might have proven a hint otherwise, but there is no way of knowing.

The dragon they needed to strike in the eye did sound like a terrible battle for Vax and his companions, but they did find a vulnerable point just the same. ]

Did they move differently? You spoke of diverse powers before.

[ They likely don't have the luxury of studying their foes prior, so they will have to learn to do so during battle. ]

[twin_blade]

[ Vax blinks at the sudden excitement. After a moment, he realizes why. Of course. Dion loves books. ]

Sort of. A friend of mine has a shop that specializes in magical items and tomes and such. No one knows more about the world than he does. Most of the books on dragon lore are purely poetic, according to him. Anyone who gets close enough to a dragon doesn't generally live long enough to write about it.

[ They were very lucky, indeed, to happen upon the right book, but they at least knew they were dealing with a blue dragon at the time. ]

So far, the two we fought didn't move differently but had different magic. The first threw lightning, the second threw acid. We were able to pierce the skin of the first, but not the second. I can only imagine what the third will have in store for us, but I do know the powers of the other three. They used them when they attacked Emon.

[oblige]

[ Dion considers this information. The dragons of Vax's world are not of sensible physiology, at least not from his perspective. How could their scales be so tough they couldn't be pierced anywhere, yet they lose no mobility at all? His long tail thumps lazily against the log as he mulls over these oddities.

Well, they'll just have to work past the nonsense, he supposes. ]

What abilities do the others possess? Do they all appear to have a similar build?

[ He flaps his draconic wings a little as indication of what he means to ask. Are their body shapes look the same as one another, or are they distinct? ]

[twin_blade]

[ Vax frowns softly, absently rubbing the back of his finger up and down the smooth scales of Bahamut's chest. It's not that he minds the questions, since Dion is trying to help. It's just difficult to think about what happened. It reminds Vax of all the devastation that was caused. Any information he can gain will benefit them, he hopes, should he ever make it home. ]

One had a stronger looking body, more like an ox. Not as fast, but I doubt he has to be. He breathed ice. Even as the refugees tried to flee from Emon he...

[ So many never made it as far as Whitestone. ]

[oblige]

[ The silence tells him the rest. Bahamut's long tail stills at that. Were it possible to help effectively without this knowledge, Dion wouldn't ask this of him. He knows ice dragons well, had cared for one personally, but he'd describe no dragon he had encountered as oxlike.

Of course, none harbored ambitions of world domination. The differences are difficult to feel out, but there surely is enough to help Vax stop the savage attacks on his people. ]

I am sorry that your people have suffered this.

[ Once more he wishes he could simply fight them off himself, yet once more he reminds himself they haven't that luxury. ]

Is any part of its body ice, or only its breath?

[twin_blade]

[ Even if Dion isn't able to offer advice, just talking about it can help Vax think of the best way to handle things. Maybe it bothers him, but it's worth it.

At the sympathy, Vax blinks, then smiles faintly and nods. He knows Dion would do more if he could.

Vax turns to sit with his back against the log, tenting both of his knees and resting his arms against them as he stares at the lake. ]

Just the breath. That dragon is all muscle. Probably won't even notice if we stick a spear in him.

not me, forgetting italics...

[oblige]

[ A troublesome creature. Muscular, slow, with access to ice breath. His world's ice dragons can pummel attackers within a broad radius, but were no more densely built than any other dragons. It was the finer details that differentiated them.

Yet these factors are unimportant in the face of Vax's bulky dragon foe. ]

Have you access to explosives?

[ Have you considered the dodongo method... ]

lol dodongo

[twin_blade]

[ Vax sets his chin on his folded arms that rest over his knees. ]

Vex has explosive arrows. I don't think they'd leave a mark on this dragon.

[ They might be miniscule compared to Bahamut's full size, but they are tough, and Vax's team is working with very little. Even the mithral of his world is not easily acquired. ]

Maybe we should start training dragoons.

[ A half smile is passed over to the small dragon next to him. ]

[oblige]

If you were to get the explosives down its throat, I should doubt it has such defenses within.

[ Dion just puts that out there. It may be an outlandish plan, but with true aim and fortuitous timing, it could very possibly work.

Though whether such creative measures are feasible is another matter. ]

Dragoons would be a boon, though it takes time to develop the skill and physique required for the jumps.

[ Having his blessing, while not necessary, was also a boon. ]

[twin_blade]

[ Get something inside the dragon? For a moment, Vax cringes at a thought. ]

Good idea. That would be effective.

[ It's not a bad idea, but clearly, it's brought up a memory he thought he might forget. ]

How high are those jumps, anyway? People just learn to jump like that? Without magic?

[oblige]

Since at least one of you is a marksman.

[ Dion is long accustomed to thinking of creative uses for what he has, faced with a foe who could kill him with a single strike. Then there was pitting his forces against the armies of other nations. Resourcefulness was essential with uphill odds especially.

He considers the question properly. Though he hasn't taken precise measure since his days in training, he had an approximate idea of how far a dragoon can bound. ]

Do you recall where I'd found that gift box, when first we met? That is very possible for any trained dragoon, without use of magic or a blessing.

[twin_blade]

Makes sense.

[ A whole lot more sense than what they actually did to get something inside a dragon. There was an issue with acid, though. ]

So, you’re saying if you just train for years, you can practice jumping so much that you'll be able to jump on top of a building?

[ Without magic? Vax tips his head back until it's resting on the log and looks over at the mini-eikon. He appears skeptical. ]

[oblige]

[ And so, in turn, a little draonic face tilts curiously in return. ]

Does my musculature seem unsuitable for leaping thus?

[ You wound him, sir!

Not really though. ]

It would be far more difficult were mythril not so lightweight, but that is a guarded secret.

[twin_blade]

Well, yeah.

[ Vax doesn't doubt Dion, of course, but he's having a bit of fun with him. ]

I mean, you've got great legs, don't get me wrong, but how can a man do that? Lightweight armor or not?

[oblige]

All dragoons have legs like mine. A product of years of training.

[ Clearly he need not think too deeply on the matter of his great legs. He worked hard on those.

Is being able to leap so high really that outlandish?

His little dragon body puffs out a sigh. ]

Of all I have said, do you truly think that the dubious part?

[twin_blade]

[ Vax chuckles as his words go right over Dion's head. Guess that's normal for him.

The bit of puffing and huffing is cute. As if to calm him, Vax reaches with one finger and gives the tiny dragon some scritches under his little chin. ]

Well, can you blame me? To have leg strength like that, they should be the size of a giant's.

[oblige]

[ Dion learns today that he is not immune to scritches. No one has really tried this with a gigantic dragon for understandable reasons, but in this form he leans into it like a cat before he catches himself and straightens.

That's pretty pleasant in a dragon form, who knew? ]

At full size, I suppose my Eikon does have such legs.

[ They're strong at that, and he makes use of them. ]

Yet it is a thing I could train for and do as a man. Terence did, and he had no powers at all.

[ And there's the smallest bit of pride in that statement. All that Terence achieved, he did through his own hard work and competence, and Dion thinks that's admirable. ]

[twin_blade]

[ Vax didn't expect such a response, since he's fiddled with the little dragon a couple of times already, but it looks like he found the sweet spot.

Since Terence didn't have an eikon's powers, Vax supposes it must be possible. Somehow. ]

I don't think something like that could be achieved on my world without magic. But maybe there's something special about your training technique.

[oblige]

[ Clearly, there's fiddling and then there's scritches. It's news to Dion, having only used this smaller form to get around more covertly or let Silas carry him about like a toy.

At full size, his purpose was battle. ]

That may be so. Sanbreque prides itself on its dragoons.

[ And accordingly, they are known for them. He mulls the matter over for a few moments, shifting his wings to settle more comfortably on the log. ]

Though it may be possible regardless, with my blessing. I've not considered it before.

[twin_blade]

[ At full size, Vax would be a little too nervous to give Bahamut scritches, even knowing it was Dion. He'd give the little guy more of them if he thought he could get away with it. ]

What do you mean?

[ Dion seems to be pondering something, but Vax isn't entirely sure he understands what it is yet. ]

[oblige]

Forgive me my wandering thoughts.

[ Here he is, going on about something Vax is yet unfamiliar with. ]

I am capable of bestowing blessings. Think of it as a protection of a sort, which comes from my Eikon's power. In Rosaria, it is common practice for the Phoenix to bestow a blessing to his most elite guard, for example. No such formal practice exists with Bahamut, but I am no less able.

[twin_blade]

[ Vax smiles a little with amusement at the apology. He doesn't mind. ]

A blessing? For protection? How does it work?

[ It sounds a little like the blessings of priests back home, which are mostly rubbish just to make people feel better, but from an actual eikon, maybe there's something to it. ]

[oblige]

[ Dion's first answer is that little rumbling approximation of a hum his dragon body produces at this size. How to explain something implicitly understood in his world, yet unheard of in another...

It's more of a challenge when it's instinctual on his part. ]

I could only speak for my experience, but it only requires focus and intent. That protection remains with a person, strengthens them to a degree, though how it manifests may vary by individual.

[ Whether that is owed to how those individuals use that boon or something undefined, he couldn't say. He also couldn't suggest Clive as an example of one who had received a blessing, seeing as he is a wholly unique case and got more than others would from it as a result. ]

My dragoons for example— I wished them to be as safe as they possibly could be.

[twin_blade]

[ The soft 'hum' of the little dragon is actually kind of nice. Vax isn't sure Dion's making dragons less scary, since it's hard to think of him as a dragon at this size, but it is incredibly cute to behold. ]

And that kept them safe in battle? It does sound like a blessing.

[ He's not entirely sure what brought this train of thought up, but eikons seem to have many powers beyond their massive size and destructive magic. ]