that mighty dragon, he ceased his fearless roar

[faderifting]

WHO: Dragon-slayers
WHAT: The three Inquisition teams face their dragony foes
WHEN: Guardian 28
WHERE: Emprise du Lion
NOTES: Violence, gore, etc. This log contains closed threads for the 12 characters who were assigned slots on the dragon-fighting quest. Each team has an info pack-type starter about its dragon below. From here it is up to you to coordinate OOCly and decide how you want things to go down, and to NPC the dragon as needed. It also has an open thread for post-dragon-slaying tavern boasting.

By the end of Guardian Judicael's Crossing is repaired, at least enough to send Inquisition agents across on foot. But there is another obstacle preventing them from reestablishing a link between Sahrnia and the outside world: three high dragons have taken up residence across the bridge in an area called the Pools of the Sun. Here, the only road out through the mountains winds between rocky hills, ruins, and statuary. The remains of three structures dominate the landscape, arenas commissioned by Orlesian nobility in ages past.

Each of the teams has been assigned a dragon, and given as much information about it as the Inquisition has been able to gather from a few cautious scouting missions. This consists of where it sleeps and its primary method of attack. Though Inquisition resources are not great, they have had mages working overtime preparing at least basic protections against the dragons' elemental magic. While not enough to prevent injury altogether, they do significantly increase chances of escaping without dire casualties. They have also been provided with a small stock of healing and lyrium potions.

The three teams have been chosen from among the most-suited of the volunteers, and are dispatched across the river together. They split off on arrival, each making their way to the dragon's location and, at a roughly simultaneous moment, beginning the attack.

Comments

[hlif]

Since arriving in the Emprise he's watched the dragons as they circled, walking along the repaired Judicael's Crossing to gaze up at them. Reavers drink their blood, Reavers like Asher, and after the attack on the camp he's wanted nothing more than to bury the head of it in the neck of at least one. Now he has his chance.

Cold bothers him little, when his armour is thick fur over heavy chainmail.

When he gives in to the blood frenzy that comes of being a Reaver he feels little else, and he lets out a roar, circling wide as he moves in to give the dragon a big target to draw what attention he can. Pain makes him fight better, if the beast gets some hits in as the others get a chance to attack, then he'll welcome it with a laugh.

[make_my_mark]

She'd crossed paths with all manner of dangerous beasts. Bears and leopards and wolves and razorbacks; never because she'd wanted to, but out of necessity. For food and fur, because they were too dangerous to simply pass by.

Lara had no wish to kill these creatures either, but she could, again, recognize the necessity. And the Inquisition was helping her; she would help them.

Plus, they were dragons. Honest to God dragons. If even without a better reason, she wasn't entirely certain she'd have been able to pass up the chance to see them.

The man charged ahead, and she circled in the opposite direction, boots confident despite the rough and loose stone of the ring, drawing and knocking an arrow as she ran. As she tried to prepare....

There was no preparing. The beast landed, the ground shuddered and for a moment all she could do was stare. The word impossible echoing through her mind even as all of her senses screamed otherwise. Then the dragon was screaming and it's throat began to glow an icy white and instinct and preservation took over.

Move, Lara!

She loosed the first arrow and took off at a run again, looking for a new angle.

[dragoon_pride]

Dragons. This is the ultimate battle for a dragoon, what he was made for. The moment he'd come here during that earlier mission and seen then from afar, Kain had wanted to return and face them. He'd been so eager for it that he'd almost broken off from the party a couple of times now, believing this to be his real calling here, the reason he'd been brought to this world.

He's fought dragons before back home, fortunately, so he's got... at least some idea of what to expect. Though there are differences, of course, no two are alike, and he sees that right away as he approaches this one. He'd best not drop his guard.

Kain's strategy is of course, to come in from above. The others charging in gives him plenty of opportunity to jump in the meantime. His jump takes him far above for a moment, high into the air. As he swiftly descends, he strikes toward the dragon's hide with his lance, leaping aside to land afterward... and ready himself for the next attack.

[apostasia]

Dragons are not something a man encounters, in Eosia -

- but Martel has never met a fight he didn't want to finish. He'd prepared before they set out, the heat of his bespelled armor against him, the extra strength in his body, the nearly-manic edge of it that he knows full well means he'll be paying for this in spades later. His sword doesn't flame, but the spell had lit the blade itself white-hot; it'll be melted wreckage by tomorrow, but for as long as he needs it to last now ...

Or he might die trying. He thinks he might in the instant that he rolls with an unexpected backwards step, slams his sword up and into the underside of its massive, sharp-taloned paw - he's still pulling it out when he rolls onto his knees to wrench himself back to his feet and scramble away from, if not certain, then at least relatively likely death.

If he dies today, he doesn't die negligently, not even acknowledged by the fucking beast.

[hlif]

Rolling let him clear the worst of the blast, knocking him back a few feet with ice creeping up his right leg. Even through the armour it hurts, but he gets moving before she has another chance to hit him while he's down, moving for one of the back legs.

"Mind her tail!" He bellows, in the event that someone might decide to go behind her to avoid her breath and teeth; one hit with that tail might send them right off the ring if they're too close to the edge, and a fall like that won't end well for any of them.

With his axe outstretched he spins, closer and closer to land heavy blows against the ankle until she raises the leg to swipe at him and anyone that might happen to be behind, shrieking her fury.

[make_my_mark]

The knowledge of what they were doing lingered - a dragon, shit, a real dragon - but it was only a whisper then, self-preservation taking over all forethought.

She heard the shout, the warning, just as the tail began to swing her way, and she tucked, rolled, and tumbled out of the way. Dirt and rock scrapped against her armor, dug into bar palms as she righted herself, but she paid them even less mind.

She came up ready, drawing her bowstring in a fluid motion, releasing an arrow into the great claw that was coming down on Asher, hoping it would take something soft(er) and painful and give him time to get out of the way.

[dragoon_pride]

Well, the dragon sure does fight... like a dragon, which is strangely comforting for Kain. So they really aren't a whole lot different here, after all. Unfortunately, that also means it's still a huge challenge ahead.

At least Asher's warning comes at the right time. Kain takes to the air just as that tail swings wildly, soaring far above and out of range of that attack. So far so good, the beast is sticking to the ground... that could change at any moment though.

Down he soars, this time into a move he calls the sky rave, positioning himself in the air so he's stabbing straight downward, spinning as he comes down. It's another hit. No chance to celebrate though, as the dragon roars, then sends forth another bitter cold blast of its ice breath. Kain grimaces when he takes a hit from that, his right arm especially, but he'll deal, even if it's as freezing as the worst blizzaga.

[apostasia]

The boy - a man, barely - in the air is almost more disconcerting than the dragon. Almost; he doesn't allow himself the luxury of being goggle-eyed at his own allies when there's a dirty great dragon prepared to send them all to whatever gods will take them, launching instead with sword ready and the bloody-minded intent of tearing apart tendons and ligaments of the hind leg, following the start Asher's made, expertly slotting himself into the space left by the other man and the dragon's blind spots.

'Expert ease' is the phrase they usually use, but Martel would describe none of this as easy.

[hlif]

If Asher hadn't gone hunting with Kain before, there's no doubt in his mind that he would've been shouting at him right about now. As it is, he knows what to expect but he's also half-expecting the dragon to look up and either swallow him or blast him right out of the sky. The woman with them had to be about the same age as his own siblings and he grinned at her when the leg didn't come down right away, allowing him to move under the dragon to work from the other side.

Getting her down would give them a real chance to aim for her whole side where the scales weren't just as thick, but they'd need to soften her up first before they'd be able to do that.

But if she decided to take off...

A bridge to cross whenever the came to it as he rolled, coming up at the other hind leg to spin again. Right now he'll stick to what works and worry about what a true dragon hunter would think later when he's bloodied but laughing.

[make_my_mark]

She'd never fought a dragon before, but she'd certain heard enough stories to guess what it meant when its head reared back and the scales along its throat began to glow.

"Look out!" she shouted. Adrenaline spiked, and her heart thumped hard, pushing it through her body. She fired off another shot, aiming for one of the great, dark eyes, and then she was moving, hoping to get out of range - or at least be a target harder to hit.

It screamed, all fury and power, and Lara could feel it down to her bones, terrifying and exhilarating all at once, as the blast of ice pummeled the arena.

[dragoon_pride]

The dragon's terrible roar is deafening. Kain leaps away. A chill fills the air from the ice attack, and the dragon lunges toward its opponents in rage, opening its massive jaws and ready to strike.

Kain is light on his feet as he scrambles away, the dragon's teeth snapping together just behind him as he barely evades. Lance spinning in hand, he uses it to unleash his Cyclone attack, a burst of swirling winds rushing in at the creature. Then, he's back to the air, not letting himself stay in any one position too long. He's aiming more toward the back coming down this time, though now he's got to deal with that thrashing tail... and those claws...