Iseul's Story

Whetted senses reacting to the next bell, the dragon woman listened cautiously for the ensuing buzzers of potential enemies rejoining the fray. She didn't have much in respect to a plan, knowing fully that complex thought was well-beyond her capabilities. But Sibylle always trusted her instincts, and they were blaring at her in deafening measure. With a deft stride, she grazed Art's shoulder with her elbow, instinctively shielding him from the direction that smelled the most dangerous by positioning her scaled forearm to safeguard them both as she huffed a husky puff of aerated aether. In a flash, 3 robe figures flanked the pair, drifting like apparitions and spouting word that Sibylle simultaneously didn't understand nor cared for.

With a territorial growl, she waved her hand in a large arched berth in an attempt to swat away the robed flies, arching her head back to check on the remaining trio behind her before her attention shifted back at the initial source of her unease.

The sounding of an open gate. The tones of hollowed heelstep.

-

"My my, I must laud you for sifting out the fodder so comfortably. How quaint Team..Artellis, was it?" With a drawn smile, a woman donning ceremonial garb emerged from the ambient dusk. Briared horns dwelling atop her head as a nereid tail twice the length of Sibylle's own swayed languidly trailing closely to every sauntered step. That grin of hers could, seemingly could shift into the purest malice at a single fleeted moment. Weaponized enmity manifesting as her eyes swooped out both Jin and Usagi's cell in the crowd. Glaring at the pair through the rusted bars and umbral veil of darkness as if she could smell both the blood of a 10 Great Families princess and a 13 Month series weapon from over 100 meters away. "Still, I wish some of us trusted our hunger more. Clawing up with an empty stomach will get you nowhere..especially those with considerable fangs."

Her attention shifted back towards the current holders of the crown, studying every member extensively with a poised bout of scrutinization. "Then Team Artellis, let us devour each other! I'll have your crown..and the pet that's wearing it..~" Iseul's pompous marches narrowed into a predatory charge, easily dashing past the other teams who were beckoned to challenge. Forming fracture upon the ground she ran upon before jumping first at Sibylle and Artellis who were postured in the prominent forefront of their formation.

【ɗιαƖσgυє cσƖσя: #ec6901 ♙ тнσυgнт cσƖσя #301934 】

Artellis immediately went into flight mode as three mummified individuals made their approach, his elation at fixing his weapon lost as he and his dragoness compatriot were surrounded. With paranoid and defensive posture, he flicked his weapon between each of the strange assailants adjusting his target as they made movements he considered threatening; eventually settling on their red-robed leader who spoke.

“Have you considered joining Veindall?”

“Veindall?” Artellis repeated, hesitating a moment as he lowered his aim slightly, before immediately correcting his posture back to aim at his target. The comment that he was well suited for whatever this group was concerned the marksman, especially with the way they were ‘dressed’.

“Oh yeah? What makes you say that?” Stalling for time as he addressed the red figure, Artellis figured every moment he kept these people from attacking him or his allies was a bonus. They just had to keep the crown for the time limit. That was it.

Despite Artellis entertaining their adversaries' questions, Sibylle was having none of it; aggressive sweeps and snarls kept the bandaged bad-guys from approaching too much closer before having to step back. It was comforting having her close by. Well, mostly. He still hadn’t quite forgotten the fact that she could incinerate or obliterate him the moment she chose. But she seemed to like him enough that he definitely just had to stay on her good side.

In the moments while he awaited a response from the… He’d call them cultists for now - Anyway, in those moments before they responded, another individual had set their attention on them. Her voice carried far, and Art turned to look at the figure before commenting in surprise. She rambled a bit, and the gunner’s gaze lingered on her appearance for only a few moments before turning to Sibylle. “Uh… Friend of yours?” He asked. The similarity in species being the only real reason for the joke. He didn’t have time to find out if Sibylle found it funny before the telltale thuds of an approaching angry dragon cracking the ground sounded out.

“Oh snap-Sibylle flyflyfly!” Jumping into Sibylle and hugging around her waist, Artellis held on for dear life as his ally took off into her own leaping flight, escaping the impact crater as the Veindall mummies were scattered by the aqua-dragon’s landing. “Why does everyone want to devour me?!” Artellis whined as they made some distance. I guess that was the downside of the fame of leadership. Especially with Theri's blasted taunting of everyone to come challenge him! Still, despite the terrifying focus of their enemies, this was good in some ways. If he could keep them chasing him rather than attacking Moon for the crown, this game was as good as won.

“Hah! Sorry lady! Sibylle’s way faster and stronger than you. Cuter too~” Artellis teased, laughing. He intended to taunt their enemy and coax her after them, oblivious to how Sibylle felt about all this.

Threnody watched with a look of practiced distaste as Iseul pressed the button that launched her team into this round of the Crown Game. With a bored huff, she shuffled out onto the battlefield and sat down as the round began in earnest. Touching her knees to her chest, her index finger traced a figure eight in the sand while she sat. It didn't make any sense to her why they should have to do extra credit for a chance at a prize. It wasn't what her father had promised when he implored her to climb the Spire. Besides that, she hadn't slept well last night, the ride to the entrance exam had been particularly bumpy and the only rest she managed to snatch from the Sandman had been fitful at best.

Iseul exploded into action as another group threatened to eliminate Team Art before she had a chance. A stray needle flew past her, barely missing her nose. She sniffled, it was colder on the battlefield than the waiting area had been, and she wished her choice of clothing had been a bit warmer. Lifting up her free hand she stared at the frilly sleeve that ended with a metal band around her middle finger. 'Where the hell did they find this outfit?'

One of the bandaged buffoons dodged backward and sprung towards her, then he back sprung again, and again until he was only a few feet in front of her. Then he did it once more, almost certain to collide with her if she didn't move; some people were just too rude. The moment before his palm touched the ground Threnody snatched his arm out from under him and drove the heel of her other hand into his throat, slamming the man into the ground. He let out a choked gurgle and then ceased moving.

---

Both of the teams that immediately entered the round almost immediately became aggressors to Artellis, which was to be expected. All that was left to do was run out the clock and make sure no one got to Moon before then. Sibylle took to the sky with their team leader, leaving Therion to deal with the Veindal lackeys. They were unskilled enough that he put them on the defensive so long as he kept coming at them and disorganized enough that there was no risk of getting hurt so long as he kept the right amount of distance.

With a coy smile, Therion cornered the leader of the Veindal cell, forcing him to backpedal into another participant. It didn't matter why the girl wasn't fighting, so long as she didn't move before he tripped on her. In a flash of motion, the girl moved and pinned the man. Well... More like she put him to sleep. Scratching at the back of his head, he briefly wondered just how the hell she had moved so fast. It hadn't been like how Sibylle moved, violently forcing her way through the Aether with sheer brute force, instead, it seemed as if her movements had been pulled along by its current.

The girl made eye contact with him. She had beautiful eyes; something about them nagged at the back of his head, like he had seen them before, and often. Any further speculation on the matter was put on hold as the girl stood up and pointed an accusing finger at him.

"E-Eerie?"

Cocking his head, Therion focused on the girl, ignoring the rest of the battlefield as he puzzled out what was happening.

"Eerie!" She proclaimed with one hand on her hip.

Therion pointed to himself, "Me?"

She nodded and screamed, "Eerie!" Then leapt at him.

Therion's siblings had been fast and he was forced to find ways to be faster. Despite that, the strange girl seemed to close the distance in a single bound. Falling backward, he realized her hand was reaching for his throat. At the last moment, he produced his wand and used it to create a bubble of Aether between his neck and her palm. Without hesitation she closed her hand around the Aether, causing it to explode and blast him away from her.

As the force threw him to the ground, Therion rolled and stood back up, ready to counter her next move, but it didn't come. Her gaze was suddenly locked onto Moon. More specifically it was locked onto the crown Moon had.

"Crown." Ignoring everything else on the battlefield, she began to walk determinedly towards the throne.

---

---

Moon grit her jaw, the crown on her head remaining in place despite the blood dripping from the wound on her skull. Unlike the others, Moon could not manipulate the aether around her. She had never learned how and could not sense it like they were able to. Even as a cat, the use of aether was impossible, although she had seen others use it. Moon could only rely on herself and her own skills. The cat rose to her feet, tail stiff, ears pointed forward, remaining on the enormous throne and directed her bow towards one of the creatures dressed in bandages. "Moon will help," she loosed her arrow, which dug into the shoulder of her target.

Lee-Seo jumped forth, throwing up their arms and manipulating the aether around themselves to create a barrier in the hopes of buying their team more time. If they won this game, it would give team Art a huge advantage over the others. Lee-Seo turned back to look at Moon, giving her a nod of reassurance that they would stand here and do their best to guard the crown. Someone had to make sure that the cat did not slip. "Sit back down," Lee-Seo urged and Moon listened, falling back onto her behind on the throne. It was a wonder how the cat was conscious at all, considering how she had been beaten in the last round.

The clock was ticking, the round was nearly halfway over in the blink of an eye. Moon shook her head, she needed to stay awake.

Luck. She'd mentioned this prior, how they'd need a high level of luck to make it up the tower. That along with skill, strength, wits, and the will to survive. They'll also need to plan out strategies. And with rules and some time, they can figure things out but first and foremost, both he and Usagi require more team members. That, or they merge with an established one. Power in numbers, whatever it took to get them out alive.

He was here long enough to realize it truly wasn't worth it. Winning just to fit in to the establishment when they chose this for sport. People sacrificing themselves like cattle for the slaughter. It's sickening.

Survival now, that's his goal. And if he can bring others with him to the top, then he'll die doing so.

He tried to get comfortable, focused back on the battle below. Usagi had a point about cat-ears with the crown, she's one to watch out for. "They'll have to rely on more than just skill and luck, that can only take you so far." Since they're timed they need to figure out a strategy, use every advantage to keep their status quo. They have another one left before game over as well.

"They're going to want to distract their enemies, best way I can see, is to goad them into fighting them, steal their attention from the main source just long enough until the timer goes."

With the new comer's arrival, she looked ready to kill. And the look in her eyes when she briefly glanced toward them, a look he's seen countless times over. He merely stared back, unflinching.

The others handled their opponents best they could, all a dance, step, strike, back, dodge, step, strike, over and over. Slow and steadily taking control of the players on the field. Plan along with the time, adjust as needed, take full advantage of every second and above all things, don't get caught. Don't lose the source.

"They're doing well so far, let's see if they can keep it up."

---

With the vermillion flame of her glare fading, it ferried the false notion that perhaps she had recognized a long-lost acquaintance, further supported with her shared draconic status with their current enemy. However, following the neutral stare was a dainty head tilt, now describing more appropriately confusion and puzzlement. She had thought her kind were amongst the stars. Even if they weren’t quite splitting images of the same species, Sibylle figured she at least would be able to prod some answers.

Well, after she has placated the haughty sea drake..

Only granted a short reprieve to process, she blankly stared at Art who now was tucked neatly in her arms before her own honed instincts were lit ablaze. Clenching him close and bending into a taut crouch before bursting into the air. Squalls of fierce winds subsequently erupted from the bellows of her leathered wings, concussing into the floor’s surface before sweeping and spreading across the blond concrete.

“My my? So they’ve entrusted you with a leadership position despite such fallacious judgment? Just makes me want to eat you even MORE!” Having landed firmly from her leap with a heel flip, the concentrated force rippled through the abused flooring and formed fractures that stemmed from the foot she landed upon. Tensing further, her taller frame twisted powerfully and in tandem, her tail seemed to enlarge. Spanning to its true size, several times taller than the woman herself, it was both strong and fast enough to swat them out of their leap. Disturbing Sibylle’s flight path and sending them careening into a nearby wall.

Acting fast, Sibylle turned her body to absorb the brunt of the blow as they collided cleanly with one of the supports that hugged the arena outskirts. Iseul, who was closeby, advanced through the dusky smoke, the rhythmic strut reverberating through the arena.

The vermillion dragon recovered quickly, but delicately placed Artellis down first before marching front and center between her leader and her enemy to provide her teammate with the space and range to fire his weapon.

“I pray you can match my stomach, Redwing.” With a voice like pompous silk, she directed her next taunts towards Sibylle specifically as they faced off. “Or I’ll be taking your dearest leader as my next meal..~”

Said leader coughed some from the dust, arms feeling like they’d been ripped from their sockets when Sibylle jumped with all of that force. Artellis’ face was windswept, and he couldn’t help but be envious of his companion’s fortitude. Such incredible movements didn’t seem to harm her in the slightest, and even after being slapped from the sky by Iseul, Sibylle didn’t even really seem to flinch, far more concerned with his own wellbeing before she charged in. In fact, despite taking the blow and cushioning his impact, she seemed less bruised than he was.

“Sibylle-” Art tried to raise a voice of concern before she took off, but it wouldn’t be heard as she moved to clash with her rival dragon. As much as he wanted to believe in her, this other dragon matched and even outpaced her speed - Though had Sibylle slowed down for his sake? He couldn’t be certain. He hoped so. If she could fight this aqua dragon on even or stronger footing, that would be perfect. If not, as it stood now, he’d need to be the difference maker - And ideally, not as a liability.

For now, he shifted. He needed to be clear of their clash before they tore up the ground and wall from impacting into each other. Running along the wall, Artellis repositioned, taking aim for any openings he had to chip at Iseul. Safe shots. He’d need to play it cautious just in case they shifted unexpectedly and he ended up shooting Sibylle. Lining up his weapon, he fired off a few energy rounds, mainly at Iseul’s face to throw her off. In its default state, his gun could wind a normal person and maybe even knock them off their feet. For beings as powerful as these two? Well, distraction was perhaps all he could hope to achieve. All the while, his mind raced, analyzing the situation both in this battle, and across the field. This fight would be for naught if the crown was lost.

Unfortunately such foresight wasn’t a staple in Sibylle’s regular thought stream, unfortunately viewing her supposed leader as an almost materialistic trophy piece of her to-be-protected hoard as opposed to an ally of equal strength. These simplistic views beckoned her to posture herself between Art and Iseul, not exactly allowing him much of an avenue to fire true once their bout started.

However, despite the setback, the measured volley of fluxing energy aimed true. Curving around the charging Sibylle and deterring Iseul for a breath’s reprieve. Weaving as she ran, she dodged the majority of the bolts, the blasts singing the concrete with dusky ash. However, one soared directly into her amber gaze, forcing her to pivot her feet into a violent stop as she deflected the lucent projectile out of the air, and into one of the concrete beams close to the wall with a deft swipe.

As soon as her own hand eclipsed her direct sightline, Sibylle was already leaping into the air and preparing to deliver a punishing smash, jumping to unintentionally provide an explicit window for a few more shots..or taunts.

“Yes… We can do this!” Art grinned to himself as he continued focusing his shots on Iseul through the fresh direct-angle Sibylle provided him. They could do this. Even if Iseul was stronger, she wasn’t powerful enough to deal with the both of them in a scenario like this. Confidence riding high, Artellis waited for the inevitable impact of Sibylle’s killer blow. It made his worry earlier seem silly.

Whetted senses hearing ever clearly Artellis’ premature celebratory gestures, a wide smile formed on Iseul’s previously neutral expression. Scoffing loudly, she readied her counter-measure. “How precious!”

Twirling back, her impressive tail surged forward, a wide deft sweep that swatted away the covering fire and protected Iseul’s sinless skin from blemishing. Moving in tandem, the haughty ivory-scaled dragoness hid behind the wide ridge of the appendage and pranced back in preparation to dodge Sibylle’s slam.

The vermillion dragon instinctively aimed her landing on the tail, only for the finned hind limb to retract back to reveal only the grimy flooring. Imparting fissure where she landed, Sibylle continued her assault, starting with a gnarly right hook that rippled through the air.

However with a dexterous motion, Iseul patted the attack to the side. Despite being off-balance, Sibylle extended her other arm to strike in a horizontal hammering motion only for the sea drake to dip to the side and catch it under her own left arm.

With a wide swipe, Iseul serrated through the front fabric of the other dragon’s blouse and drew blood. Drawing from the opening by pushing Sibylle back slightly and delivering a weighty hard-heeled front-kick that sent her tumbling to the ground.

“Hmb, how you fight, dear dragon, is rather uncivilized. Had no one bothered to teach you how to properly throw a punch?”

With a profound grunt, Sibylle responded in kind to the obvious taunt. Charging once more and inadvertently blocking Art from a clear shot similar to earlier in their encounter. Using her wings for leverage, the red dragoness leapt up and attempted a crescent roundhouse kick. However, as if reading the ebbs and flows of the aether currents in the air, Iseul only needed to dip back slightly to dodge before grasping onto the outstretched limb with her talons and pulling her in.

Combining with the added momentum of Sibylle being brought into her, Iseul changed grips and delivered a blistering punch directly into the vermillion dragoness’ stomach. Not wasting either movement or moment as Sibylle clenched her side at a desperate attempt to catch her breath, Iseul seized the red dragon by her fiery hair before she could fall on her back and angled another intense blow with her opposite fist directly into the red dragon’s jaw. With a fiery smile, she shoved Sibylle back with the elbow of the same arm and delivered a final blow with her tail, twisting her form in tandem to utilize every muscle in her body and condense it into the devastating smash.

Crashing into Sibylle at blinding speeds, the attack thrusted her towards Artellis. As her gashed and battered form landed near her teammate, it became readily apparent that some sort of venom was taking hold. Her body convulsed as if electrifying shocks were flowing through her bloodstream, already unable to move a muscle courtesy of the pain alone and now finding it difficult to keep her eyes open due to the choice combination of both.

“Tsk tsk, as expected for a red dragon. So accustomed to destruction that you’re nothing but prey once your attacks are properly dealt with..” As a lofty tut seeped from her lips, her eyes fashioned themselves into a haughty glare. A condescending look one might manifest when acknowledging a wounded animal.

Then turning her head up, Iseul stared directly into Artellis with an elfin smile. “Now now, Mr. Leader..what will you do now? I might’ve accidentally broken one of your precious tools.”

Artellis froze for a moment as he processed just what had happened. The vicious blows Iseul had landed and the way she’d dispatched Sibylle in what felt like mere moments. “No way…” Art mumbled to himself. They’d been winning right? It felt like they had the advantage seconds earlier, and yet now… Art’s eyes dropped down to Sibylle, trembling more than his own, scared body. Sibylle was incredible. The strongest on their team. If she was dispatched so easily by this monster… What chance did they have? What chance did he have?

Sweat dripped from Art’s chin. They were done, right? They lost. He had to run. Get out and dodge. Away from death staring him in the face. His grip on his gun tightened. If he ran, could he even escape that creature? And if he did, what then? What would happen to Sibylle if he did? Was he just going to abandon her? Did he have to leave another friend to their demise? Artellis swallowed. Then he resigned himself to it. Art shut his eyes and started firing.

His fear and cowardice on full display, Artellis sent a wild spray of energy bullets Iseul’s way, but there was no need for her to even bother deflecting or dodging. They were horribly off the mark, as his shaky, one handed aim was pathetic. Meanwhile his other hand waved in front of him in a panic. Every single shot sailed past her. It was sad really. Fear seemed to have clawed away any rational thoughts in his brain. He really should have put his all into either running away; or if he did plan to face Iseul, opening his eyes and actually aiming at her. As it was, she’d have no trouble catching the stationary target and devouring him. If she even wanted to. A pathetic, annoyingly loud scream of fear was all the confirmation Iseul needed that he wasn’t even worth her time. “DOOOOOOONNNN’TTTT EAAATTTT MMMMEEEE! I SURRREEENNDDEEERRR-” Artellis wailed at the top of his lungs, all of his dignity gone as the coward made his utter defeat apparent…

With a tight frown, Iseul’s legs tauted before expanding outwards, sending her forward at blistered speeds. Treading through the aether-laden air fluently, it would only be a wilted breath before she’d reach him, free of another enemy to block the forward motion and easily dodging the more frenzied barrage of bolts with only moderate adjustments.

“This look is more fitting! Scream for me, Mr. Leader!” The umbra of her slitted eyes narrowed, exposing further the intense orange hearth that flanked the pupil. Pounding off her heel, she leapt into the air and intended to seize him by the throat.

Then, as Iseul got right next to her prey, she heard a single word: “Not~”

Art stopped his screaming, opening his eyes and looking to face Iseul directly, a smirk on his lips. And as his ear-splitting scream faded, other sounds became more apparent to Iseul’s senses. Large chunks of rubble and debris came crashing down around her, the shattered concrete pillar collapsing from the combination of the two dragons clashing and the seemingly errant shots from Artellis just seconds before. It had all been an act! Feigning weakness to have her let her guard down as the rocks came crashing down! Even that undignified scream was a ploy to hide the warning signs-! Though it wouldn’t be enough to take her down, with that long tail of hers, there was no way she wasn’t going to be pinned down or distracted, at least for a moment. And in that moment…

Taking a step back from the approaching dragoness, straying just out of her range, Art reached to the underside of his weapon, pulling and revealing the glowing energy chamber underneath. The liquid inside seemed to bubble, swirl and brighten, energy crackling at the front of his weapon as a sphere formed. “EAT IT!” Art cried out as the energy bolt rocketed off the weapon, a booming noise echoing out from it and sending the man flying backwards from the force of the shot. The green ball of powerful aether tore through the air, kicking up dust as it closed in directly on the dragoness. All he needed was for this to hit. Normally, someone of her power and speed could easily avoid a telegraphed strike like this, but so long as he’d gotten her stuck, even for a moment, this had to be enough to finish her. At least, that’s what he hoped. He’d never known about this mode of his gun until moments ago, but it definitely felt more powerful.

Iseul’s instincts screamed to her, unable to properly read the boy’s latent intention before it was far too late to gracefully dodge. That large tail of hers, as predicted, became caught first by a stray piece of rubble. Iseul grunted sorely as she had to pull herself free multiple times as her tail became caught in rapid succession. Soon after, the fluxing blast rippled through the air and struck Iseul directly in the chest, sending her deeper into the pile before she was buried by the falling debris.

Sitting up from the floor, Art brushed his nose with his hand as he sat, taking in the scene. The gamble had paid off. He’d done it! Breathing a sigh of relief, he leaned back. Earning a reprieve of resting silence, it was almost as if Art could rest easy until the pile of wreckage shook like a stirring mountain. Erupting from the top was Iseul, noble robes ripped and dirtied, skin bruised and scraped. Smiling further, she shouted at Art before pushing off her tail and legs in a mighty skyfall towards his location.

“HAH, I might fall in love. You’re amazing, Leader!~” In a fleeted moment, Iseul was only a few steps away.

“You’ve got to be kidding me?!” Artellis swore as he scrambled to try and get to his feet, having relaxed that bit too much to be ready to move and escape her lunging strike. With his weapon switched to the ‘‘Big-Bang Mode’ as he now thought of it, it’d take too long to charge and fire. Flat footed as he’d been, he couldn’t hope to escape her pinpoint strike. Eyes wide with fear, he braced for what he thought was the inevitable, but a figure seeped from the shadows just in time, well out of the sightlines of both combatants.

With a clumsy dive, Sibylle pounced from her position and seized Iseul’s tail, using her wings and legs for extra leverage as her numbed body still attempted recovery from the sea drake’s poison. Exchanging a stern look with Art, she called to him desperately.

“A-Again!”

Art blinked in stunned silence, before one name escaped his lips. “Sibylle?!” He didn’t have too long to process her request. And yet, instinct took over. He wasn’t about to be devoured. Together, they’d feast on Iseul’s defeat! Tightening his grip and planting his feet, he stopped running. This time, Art was better prepared for the blowback from his gun. He’d eased off the trigger when his feet left the ground the first time. This time, he’d hit her with everything he had! Crackles of viridian energy leapt from his weapon, and at this range, he’d never miss. Art pulled the trigger.

Another loud boom came from the gun, Artellis’ arms blowing up and past his head from the force. But this time, the boy stayed firmly rooted to the ground. No snarky quip escaped his mouth this time as the blast was dead on towards Iseul. The impact of the shot was mixed with the ringing of the bell and a dust cloud of smoke and debris. The round was over. Perhaps, he should have been concerned about the crown. Whether they won or lost. But instead, Artellis scrambled into the storm of dust, shielding his eyes with his sleeve as he repeated the name he’d spoken moments early. “Sibylle?! Hey, you okay?!” Stumbling over the chunks of fallen pillar, Art rubbed his eyes as he struggled to see through the smokescreen, reaching for the dragon figure on the floor. “Oh thank goodness, you’re okay!” Squeezing her in a hug, Art helped her up to her feet. Then, as his eyes cleared and the smoke faded, he immediately recoiled back as Iseul stared back at him. He’d found the wrong dragon.

The prodding silence after the combination of resounding booms suggested they had finally defeated the enemy, but the rustling within the dusty smoke almost as quickly did away with the notion. Despite the sheer force of the blast, her body was built to withstand aether, Iseul, now with the foresight to prepare, growing her scales outwards as she tanked the familiar fluxes with her shoulders and arms. It seemed she made a conscious effort to protect Sibylle as well, having moved her tail so that the now-unconscious dragon woman that clung to her scaled appendage was well-behind Iseul as soon as the attack made contact.

Still, even as she mustered enough strength to exchange looks, Iseul had suffered much more damage than one might expect courtesy of that pesky workshop weapon. That ivory fabric of her robes seared with blackened openings and revealing equally ashen char marring her previously porcelain skin. Her face was decorated with soot and grime and that kempt mane of hair now disorderly with stray strands.

But that smile of hers, it grew brighter as soon as they locked eyes. Using one of her taloned hands, she pulled Art close to her chest and trapped him for a few moments before letting him finally breath. With a disarming laugh, that hungering personality of hers seemed to shift to one that beckoned levity, now seemingly devoid of that bloodlust that emitted off of her like stench. “I am well, Mr. Leader.~♪ But your worry was well-placed!” Despite knowing that it was truly meant for the other dragon, her playful nature had her tease the poor boy as she stood from her previously knelt posture. Artellis stammered out incomplete words as he attempted to pass his shock and fear.

As a reluctant mercy, Iseul pivoted back to acknowledge the near unconscious Sibylle, who adhered to her whitish blue tail with both hand and foot. The appendage snaked in front of Iseul and shook rapidly, dropping the vermillion dragon in front of Art delicately as he caught her, followed by the tip of the limb drifting to the boy’s cheek and stroking once in a deft motion. “Please don’t wrongly believe I’ve did away with the prospect of devouring you, Mr. Leader. Despite the conclusion of this bout..hunger never truly goes away.~” While still ever cryptic, the tone of her voice suggested that she was merely joking with him about her bloodlust despite her previous intentions.

Turning tail and strutting towards her cell, she tilted her chin over her shoulder and imparted some final words. “Regardless, I would do away with even rudimentary trust in a dragon with red scales. Even if she hasn’t developed it yet, that lust and propensity for destruction flows deeper in those veins than blood.” The coy notes of her dialogue hardened, growing cold and sharp before shifting back to her signature grin. “I’d much rather you join me, I can be much cuter if that’ll convince you.~”

With that, she marched away without slowing. Art could only knee and watch her leave in stunned silence as he held and checked on Sibylle. Though Iseul had given him a lot to think about, right now, the most important thing was ensuring that Sibylle was okay. Though that was going to be quite hard with his attempts not to stare at her torn up blouse. Medical care probably should’ve taken priority, but he was no expert. Instead, he removed his jacket before he’d get Sibylle wrapped in it for modesty. “You did great Sibs, don’t let her get to you.” He commented as his best means of encouragement as the dragon leaned on him for support. She wasn’t in any state to be walking, so… Scooping the dragon up from underneath, Art’s face strained and knees buckled from the effort. Despite his struggles, he was surprised how light she was. Staggering across the room, he aimed to regroup with the others and see how the grander battle had turned out.